After the election, expect internet services to be taxed

You won’t hear much about it until after November, but regardless of which way the US government races go there is a good chance that a bill will be introduced to add a tax to broadband internet services. The FCC has been eying the prospects of adding more clout to their Connect America Fund, an effort to make broadband internet connectivity available even in remote areas of the country.

Technically, it couldn’t be true tax. The Internet Tax Freedom Act of 1998 prohibits that. Instead, it would be proposed as a fee to internet service providers that they could pass on to their customers if they choose.

Either way, the FCC gets the money.

According to The Hill:

The FCC floated a number of ideas for reforming the fund’s contribution system. In addition to the broadband fee, the commission also sought comments on taxing text messages, as well as levying a flat fee on each phone line, instead of the current system, which is based on a portion of the revenue from interstate phone calls.

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“Taxes” image courtesy of Shutterstock.