Prince George's County, Maryland
Thanks to the tens of thousands of wireless users who made their voices heard on Election Day, Prince George's County voters overwhelmingly rejected (Question F) a proposal to raise local telephone taxes on the November 4th ballot, with more than 72 percent of local voters opposing the measure.
Residents took a bold step to protect the tens of thousands of telecommunications consumers across Prince George’s County from a possible “triple tax.” Consumers understood that in these already difficult economic times, the last thing they needed to add to their families’ tight monthly budgets were higher taxes on their cell phones, landline or VOIP lines. It just didn’t make sense.
Today, wireless consumers in Prince George's County already pay more than their fair share in state and county taxes, while paying the current 8% local tax, the 6% state sales tax, and additional state and local E-911 fees. If passed, Ballot Question F would have raised the current 8% Sales and Use Tax on Communication up to an astounding 11%, which is a 38% increase. It would have only made a bad situation worse for all telecommunications consumers in the county. In fact, if Ballot Question F question had passed, Prince George's County residents and businesses could have faced the highest combined state and local wireless tax burden in the country – at nearly 20%!
This historic consumer victory on November 4th means that approximately $17 million dollars per year will be saved for all Prince Georges’ County consumers. That’s an estimated more than $50 dollars per year that will be saved for average families, and even more for the average small business.
Please continue visiting www.MyWireless.org to learn about other opportunities where you can make a difference with legislators and directly impact policies that affect your bottom line. MyWireless.org® thanks you for your help in protecting the freedom, value, security and mobility America's more than 267 million wireless consumers enjoy with wireless services every day.