Press Release
POLL: 59% OF PORTLAND RESIDENTS OPPOSE NEW TAX ON WIRELESS SERVICES68% Favor Referendum if Mayor and City Council Pass New 5% Wireless Tax
Washington, D.C. - Fifty-nine percent of Portland residents oppose the Mayor and Portland City Council adding a new 5% tax on wireless services, and if the wireless service tax is passed, 68% favor a ballot referendum to approve or toss out the tax, finds a new poll by MyWireless.org.
The bipartisan poll of 500 likely voters in the City of Portland was conducted on July 19, and has a margin of error of +/- 4.5 %.
“This new city tax could cost wireless consumers up to $33 million over the next three years,” said Kimberly Kuo, Executive Director of MyWireless.org. “And these poll numbers show that Portland residents overwhelmingly DO NOT want the Mayor and Portland City Council to add a new 5% utility tax on their monthly wireless bills. This unfair and excessive tax is an issue that resonates deeply with the vast majority of Portland residents who rely on the safety, security, mobility and freedom that wireless provides every day.”
According to the poll, if the Mayor and Portland City Council pass a new 5% city tax on wireless services, more than two-thirds of all voters (68%) would support having a ballot referendum on the tax. Moreover, with public awareness of the issue at 75%, a new tax on wireless services would not go unnoticed by the voters.
In May, the residents of Springfield, Oregon, by a 73% to 27% margin, overwhelmingly rejected a similar 5% tax on wireless services proposed by the Springfield City Council.
“This unfair and excessive tax will force Portland residents to pay a total of nearly 13% in monthly taxes and fees – but does nothing to improve cell phone quality or coverage,” added Kuo. “With this kind of excessive taxation, families on smaller budgets have to make hard choices about whether they can afford the personal freedom, safety and security that come with wireless technology.”
Cell phone users in the City of Portland and nationwide are encouraged to visit www.MyWireless.org -- a dynamic, interactive Web site that allows wireless users to learn more about wireless issues in Portland and nationally, to voice their support or opposition to proposed wireless taxes and regulations by directly contacting policymakers, to read about the latest wireless developments, and to help promote the innovation, affordability, and accessibility of wireless services.
MyWireless.org is a non-profit advocacy organization dedicated to giving wireless consumers a clear and powerful voice to protect the freedom, value, security and mobility they enjoy with wireless services. www.MyWireless.org