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NY reverses stand on "Cybertax" (fwd)
From: David Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>
Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1993 22:13:25 -0500
Forwarded message:
From 76407.3521 () compuserve com Thu Oct 21 22:57:15 1993
Date: 20 Oct 93 22:25:14 EDT From: Marty Winter <76407.3521 () compuserve com> To: "SEA.LIST" <sea-list () panix com> Subject: NY reverses stand on "Cybertax" Message-Id: <931021022514_76407.3521_FHA36-1 () CompuServe COM> DATE : 1019 TIME : 0017 CATEGORY: SRAP TITLE PM-NY--900Numbers 10/19/93 12:17 am CONTENTS PM-NY--900 Numbers,0283< R Tax Commissioner Reverts To Narrow Interpretation of Telephone Tax TEXT ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - The state tax commissioner has reversed himself and said that a new sales tax on telephone lines will only be imposed on services such as phone sex lines and not on computer networks. Earlier this year, the Legislature approved an additional 5 percent sales tax on information and entertainment services delivered by telephone. The idea was to tax 800 and 900 lines that provide entertainment like adult phone services, tarot card readings and soap opera updates. The law went into effect Sept. 1. But Commissioner of Taxation and Finance James Wetzler said Monday the law was written too broadly, and would apply not only to 900 lines but to computer networks, such as Prodigy, that work through phone lines. That caused protests from businesses affected by the tax. After consulting with lawmakers and representatives of the telecommunications industry, Wetzler has decided to impose the tax only on telephone services that are received aurally, Wetzler spokesman Karl Felsen said. Lawmakers estimated the tax would raise $10 million during this fiscal year. ''The way technology has developed, what goes over the telephone is expanding every day,'' Felsen said. ''Although it was clear what the Legislature wanted to tax, it wasn't clear the way the law was written.'' But a spokesman for the Republican-controlled Senate said the incident showed Wetzler is ''a little overanxious to increase tax collections.'' Attorneys for the tax department helped write the law, so Wetzler's ''motives in trying to interpret this tax so broadly are certainly suspect,'' GOP spokesman Chris McKenna said. END OF TEXT
Current thread:
- NY reverses stand on "Cybertax" (fwd) David Farber (Oct 21)
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- Re: NY reverses stand on "Cybertax" (fwd) David Farber (Oct 22)