eBay's Vice-President & Deputy General Counsel for Government Relations Tod Cohen sat down with AuctionBytes to discuss some of the lobbying efforts eBay conducts on behalf of users and itself.

AuctionBytes: What do you actually do to help get eBay's position across to legislators on Capitol Hill?

Cohen: Main Street program is the most important tool - the community are the constituents. eBay members can sign up to the main street program, and eBay reaches out to them through direct marketing and "Fly-ins." "The United States of eBay" is when eBay flies in members from around the country to teach them how to lobby on their own behalf and then sets up appointments for them with their legislators.

eBay's Government Relations staff is responsible to represent the company - most users lack the time and interest to talk to members of congress. eBay also uses outside lobbyists to get through our users point of view.

AuctionBytes: Why is eBay lobbying against online gambling? Why would this be bad for eBay?

Cohen: eBay doesn't have a position on online gambling. We support Congressman Bob Goodlatte's bill HR4777 to help clarify the situation. There is an enormous amount of online gambling, and the law's not clear (the wire act) as to whether you can go after the financial services facilitating the transactions.

AuctionBytes: AuctionBytes has written a lot about state regulators going after eBay drop-off stores and consignment sellers. What is eBay's position on this issue?

Cohen: It will always be an issue as long as auction and pawn brokers have regulatory agencies set up to regulate them - they will always expand their reach. Would the laws apply to companies that buy any item for resale, like Walmart? If a drop-off store is a pawnbroker, it should be regulated. If they are not, it should not be regulated. It doesn't meet the regulatory intent of the regulations.