Republican representative Diane Franklin, of Camdenton, Missouri, introduced Bill HB 157 yesterday in the state's General Assembly, which would add a 1 percent tax to all "violent" games. Of course, "violent" is a subjective term, but under the bill, it would apply to all games rated as Teen, Mature, or Adult Only by the ESRB.
This would designate games like The Sims 3 as similar to "actual" "violent" games like Grand Theft Auto, simply for their ratings alone. The bill only names violent video games as the subject for the tax, ignoring other "violent" media such as movies and music.
According to the proposal, revenue generated by the additional tax imposed "shall be deposited in the state general revenue fund and appropriated solely for the treatment of mental health conditions associated with exposure to violent video games." The move is a reaction by the representative, not to mention a late one, to the shooting at Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.
It's important to note, that in Vice President Joe Biden's presentation of executive actions aimed at reducing gun crime, none of them mentioned video games.
The AP reported that both Oklahoma last year, and New Mexico in 2008 attempted the same tactic, but never passed.
Similar legislation to tax violent video games failed in Oklahoma and New Mexico in recent years.
After the proposal was announced, the Entertainment Software Association was quick to respond, saying "Taxing First Amendment protected speech based on its content is not only wrong, but will end up costing Missouri taxpayers."
Gamers shouldn't get too worried just yet though. The AP reports that "Tax increases typically are a hard sell in Missouri. This past November, voters rejected a proposed tobacco tax increase for the third time in a decade, choosing instead to leave the state's cigarette tax at the lowest level in the nation. Republican legislative leaders and Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon both have taken stands against tax increases."
We'll post more as the story develops.
