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4/28/2009
Rep. Montgomery: Madison leaders ring in new phone taxes
Telephone taxes could be going up after the legislature’s Joint Finance Committee voted on Tuesday to increase taxes and fees on telephone customers by millions of dollars.
Despite objections from Republican members on the Joint Finance Committee, the Democrat majority voted to extend the Universal Service assessment—a surcharge originally intended to expand telecommunications access to all areas of the state—to cell phone users for the first time. The program has expanded in recent years because instead of the general public’s support, the Governor is now using telephone taxes for 100% of the state’s support to public library systems.
Additionally, the Committee leaders supported the Governor’s proposal to ask telephone customers to pay for complaints made to the Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection. Even local telephone companies with no history of complaints must ask their customers to help pay government specialists to handle an average of one complaint per work day, at a cost of $313 per complaint.
The committee also approved the raid of a $20 million surplus resulting from an overcharge of cell phone users for 911 technology upgrades instead of sending the refund back to customers…on the same day the committee approved a new 911 surcharge that will triple the current surcharge on most landline telephone bills.
Here’s a breakdown of the proposed new telephone taxes in the budget:
Universal Service Fund increases: $37.3 million
New DATCP assessment: $0.8 million
Raid of E911 surplus: $20.3 million
New 911 surcharge $102.6 million
$161M increased phone taxes
The Democrats picked the worst possible time to make it more expensive to pay the phone bill. Raising telephone taxes on families and businesses won’t create new jobs or improve the economy in any way.
I guess they believe somebody’s got to pay the bills for Governor Doyle’s 7.7% spending increase, but the Democrats are sorely mistaken if they believe telephone customers won’t notice when their phone bill starts to look more like a property tax bill.
Phil Montgomery is a Republican and represents the residents of the 4th Assembly District.
COMMENTS
This is why we have to recall Doyle NOW! We can't wait! Go to www.recalldoyle.com to find out more.
emily matthews (Tue Apr 28 09:50:29 2009)
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