The Statesman Journal--
Corvallis considers cell phone tax
The Corvallis city Council is considering a business tax for telecommunication companies to do business in the town. The tax would generate an estimated $696,737 per year in which the city would use initially to purchase new fire vehicles and replace the city's 40-year-old fire training tower.
The council has scheduled three hearings on the proposal in April and May in a council decision on May 15. The proposed tax would take effect January 1.
If you do not think this is a big deal... take a close look at your wired phone bill.
Here is a little assignment for you.
Take your total phone bill minus your long-distance charges.
Next deduct the actual cost the phone & any other goodies that you are paying for such as call waiting, call forwarding, etc.
What should be left is all the taxes and fees that you are paying for your phone.
It might just surprise you. It shocked me!
Currently, there are less fees involved with cell phones, but once these taxes and fees get started, you can bet it would not be too long before your cell phone bill starts looking like your wired phone bill.
2 comments:
The best part is trying to get someone from the phone company to explain all the extra taxes on the bill. They don't know what the taxes are really for anymore than I do. And since there isn't another phone company to switch to, I'm screwed. I thought monopolies were illegal but Qwest has us by the balls. The communities that are having to struggle to find money for basic services are doing what the Federal Government has taught them - tax it! If the Feds would learn to control their spending, there would be more money for States and Cities to do business and take care of the citizens within. I still think we need a revolution!
Laura, You said it very well. Oregon, and Portland, Salem, and Eugene seem to follow the idea that "If it can be taxed, we will tax it." Fireman Randy Leonard is a staunch believer in that policy.
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