There are just two days left until the current Internet tax moratorium expires. Collectively, until it is extended, we will all have to endure more bad Halloween jokes predicting the looming specter that awaits us if Congress doesn't complete its work.

But this issue isn’t a joke. Extending the moratorium is a global competitiveness issue. The Internet must remain free of regulatory barriers that could adversely impact our U.S. companies as they try to compete internationally.

The legislation passed by the Senate on Thursday night is an improvement over the previously passed House legislation. First, it's a seven-year extension versus a four-year extension. And second, the Congressional Research Service voiced concerns that the House-passed language didn't adequately exempt certain services, like instant-messaging, from taxation.

The leaders in the Senate, and also Sens. John Sununu, R-N.H., and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., are to be commended for bringing this legislation to a vote on Thursday night. Now the House needs to pass this bill and send it to the president.

Platt is the vice president of government and political affairs for TechNet.