Add to del.icio.us     Digg this

Sep. 20, 2008

Late yesterday, the CTIA (Cellular Telephone Industries Association) and Verizon Wireless both reiterated their support for the Cell Tax Fairness Act of 2008, which would put a 5-year freeze on any new mobile taxes being initiated by a state or local government.

However, local government officials say the bill is just a way for wireless carriers to lower their own taxes and wouldn’t save customers any money.

A hearing on the proposed bill was held by the House Judiciary Committee on Commercial and Administrative Law, chaired by Rep. Linda Sánchez.

Sánchez noted the bill’s advantages and disadvantages. “Working families are being hit hard with the rising cost of gas, food, even healthcare. They need to be assured that their mobile phone bills won’t be the next to spin out of control. As consumers, we want to pay lower taxes and fees on our wireless services."

Opponents and supporters of the bill both vehemently repeated past arguments.

Additionally, the wireless industry nor its customers are being held back by local taxes, as indicated by the industry’s strong growth and by the overall ubiquity of mobile phones today, she said.

Gail Mahoney, commissioner of Jackson County, Mich., testified against the bill, on behalf of the National Association of Counties. “The true aim of this legislation is a federal preemption that reduces the level of taxes that the cell phone industry pays to state and local governments,” which would have the next effect of forcing local governments to tax elsewhere.

Steve Zipperstein, Verizon Wireless' v.p. and general counsel said “Verizon Wireless wholeheartedly endorses this legislation, and we encourage its quick adoption by the Congress.”

Steve Largent, CEO and president of the CTIA which lobbies on behalf of wireless carriers, commented after the hearing with a different perspective. “Taking a break on new discriminatory state and local wireless taxes is long overdue."

He added "American consumers deserve better than being burdened with unreasonable rates of wireless taxes and fees on their monthly bills.”

As is almost always the case, the next step in a bill's timeline is a markup session, in which committee members consider changes to the bill based on the hearing, although no such session is currently scheduled.

Sánchez spokeswoman Marsha Catron declined to say if Sánchez herself supports or opposes the bill.

Add to del.icio.us     Digg this

    This article was featured on Business 5.0 and on Tech Blog.

Source: Verizon Wireless.