Tax help > Explanation of Charges on Your Telephone Bill

Explanation of Charges on Your Telephone Bill

BackgroundMany consumers do not understand the various charges and items on their monthly phone bills. Here's a quick reference that describes some of these charges:911 ? This charge is imposed by local governments to help pay for emergency services such as fire and rescue.Federal Excise Tax ? This is a three percent tax mandated by the federal government (not the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). It is imposed on all telecommunications services, including local, long distance and wireless bills.(Federal) Subscriber Line Charge ? This was instituted after the break-up of AT&T in 1984 to cover the costs of the local phone network. This charge may appear as "FCC Charge for Network Access," "Federal Line Cost Charge," "Interstate Access Charge," "Federal Access Charge," "Interstate Single Line Charge," "Customer Line Charge" or "FCC-Approved Customer Line Charge." The FCC caps the maximum price that a company may charge for this. This is not a government charge or tax, and it does not end up in the government's treasury.Local Number Portability Charge (LNP) ? The FCC allows local telephone companies to recover certain costs for providing "telephone number portability" to its customers.

This charge provides residential and business telephone customers with the ability to retain, at the same location, their existing local telephone numbers when switching from one local telephone service provider to another. This is a fixed, monthly charge. Local telephone companies may continue to assess this charge on their customers' telephone bills for five years from the date the local telephone company first began itemizing the charge on the bill. This is not a tax.State & Local Municipal Tax ? This charge is imposed by state, local and municipal governments on goods and services. It may also appear as a "gross receipts" tax in some states.(State) Subscriber Line Charge ? This charge is mandated by some states' public service or utility commissions to compensate the local phone company for part of the cost of providing local telephone lines associated with state services, i.e., intrastate long distance and local exchange services.Telecommunications Relay Services Charge ? This state charge helps to pay for the relay center which transmits and translates calls for hearing-impaired and speech-impaired people.Other ChargesUniversal Service Fund (USF) (Also called the Universal Connectivity Fee) - Because telephones provide a vital link to emergency services, to government services and to surrounding communities, it has been our nation's policy to promote telephone service to all households since this service began in the 1930s.

The USF helps to make phone service affordable and available to all Americans, including consumers with low incomes, those living in areas where the costs of providing telephone service is high, schools and libraries and rural health care providers. Congress has mandated that all telephone companies providing interstate service must contribute to the USF. Although not required to do so by the government, many carriers choose to pass their contribution costs on to their customers in the form of a line item, often called the "Federal Universal Service Fee" or "Universal Connectivity Fee."FCC's Efforts to Help Consumers Understand BillsTo ensure that telephone bills give consumers the essential information they need to protect themselves from fraud and to make informed choices, the FCC has issued the following rules and guidelines that phone companies must follow when creating their phone bills. The bills must:Be clearly organized...Identify the service provider associated with each charge...Highlight any new providers and indicate the date the change was made...Contain full and non-misleading descriptions of charges...Identify those charges for which failure to pay will not result in the disconnection of a customer's basic, local service...Provide a toll-free number for customers to call for customer service in order to lodge a complaint or to obtain information. If the customer does not receive a paper telephone bill, but receives a bill by e-mail or over the Internet, the telephone company may provide the customer with an e-mail address or Web site to inquire about charges...Use standardized labels when referring to certain line item charges relating to federal regulatory action, such as "local number portability" and subscriber line charges..

Reyes Consulting Financial Advisors Introduce an Innovative New Tax Saving Strategy, the Family Advantage Program

(ContentDesk) October 1, 2005 -- Reyes Consulting is excited to offer its newest strategy in aiding clients with liquidating appreciated assets without realizing capital gain taxes.
This solution, implemented by a California Bar Board of Legal Specialization Certified Tax Law Specialist, we refer to as the "Family Advantage Program (FAP)."
The program uses a unique combination of tax strategies that benefit not only individuals and their families, but also their charity of choice. This program, unlike traditional tax and charitable planning strategies, brings substantial benefits to both the client and the charity.
All assets are at all times under the control and management of designated family members.
A charity of choice will not only benefit annually, but also upon the death of the client.

Additionally, the client's estate is not reduced.The program was introduced by Reyes Consulting Financial Consultant Brian S. Samuels, LUTCF. Reyes Consulting Financial Advisors Introduce an Innovative New Tax Saving Strategy, the Family Advantage Program
Tax help > Reyes Consulting Financial Advisors Introduce an Innovative New Tax Saving Strategy, the Family Advantage Program

Reyes Consulting Financial Advisors Introduce an Innovative New Tax Saving Strategy, the Family Advantage Program

Get Rich Slowly

Is it hard to get rich? If you're young, not really.Its fun to play with financial calculators and see what might happen.If you have just graduated from college and are about 22 years old and if you put $100 a month in an IRA that grows at 10% a year, you will have around $865,000 at age 65. 10% a year is about what you should expect if the money was placed in a no-load S&P 500 Index Fund.So for about $23 a week or $3.30 a day you will be close to being a millionaire.If you contribute the full $4000 a year allowed right now (rising to $5000 in 2008), you would have$2,600,000. For about $11.00 a day, you would have a small fortune.If you didn't want to take a chance with the stock market (after all, it goes down sometimes), you would still have over $600,000 if you could get a 5% return.If your grandmother leaves you $10,000 in her will and you invest it for the same 43 years at 10% without adding another cent, you'd still have over $600,000 if you placed it in a tax sheltered account.Time...

Get Rich Slowly

Tax help > Get Rich Slowly

Gowealthy.com Leading Website for Dubai Freehold Properties Becomes the Online Media Partner for Smart International Property Expos 2006 to be Held in Singapore

Dubai, UAE, (ContentDesk) February 1, 2006 -- Gowealthy.com with more than 300,000 visitors a month to its credit, becomes the online media partner for Smart International Property Expos 2006 to be held in Singapore. The SMART International Property Expo attracts quality investors with a genuinely strong interest in the overseas property market. Smart expo promises high traffic, and brings you the right traffic. The exchange between Smart exhibitors and Smart visitors brings more opportunity for quality sales leads and closing contracts. Smart Singapore will be held at Suntec Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre on 6th and 7th May, 2006.

www.gowealthy.com is the leading website for Dubai properties and occupies the top ranking positions in all major search engines. The site features latest property offerings from various developers in Dubai and provides with up to date information in the form of Dubai real estate news, and free listing area for international...

Gowealthy.com Leading Website for Dubai Freehold Properties Becomes the Online Media Partner for Smart International Property Expos 2006 to be Held in Singapore

Tax help > Gowealthy.com Leading Website for Dubai Freehold Properties Becomes the Online Media Partner for Smart International Property Expos 2006 to be Held in Singapore

The Future of Tax-Exempt Credit Counseling is Featured Topic at Industry Conference

(ContentDesk) October 27, 2005 -- A featured presentation at the American Association of Debt Management Organizations (AADMO) Fall Conference will examine the denials and revocations of 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status to credit counseling agencies, the non-profit elements of state law, the development of for-profit agencies and the business models that will be required to stay in business.The future of tax-exempt status for credit counseling agencies is the most important issue facing the industry. Given the on-going wave of denials of 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status to credit counseling agencies by the IRS and the its recent announcement that it intends to revoke the status of 20 credit counseling agencies representing half the entire industry by revenue, this may be one of the most important presentations available for credit counseling, said Mark Guimond, Executive Director of the American Association of Debt Management Organizations (AADMO), the trade association for the credit counseling...

The Future of Tax-Exempt Credit Counseling is Featured Topic at Industry Conference

Tax help > The Future of Tax-Exempt Credit Counseling is Featured Topic at Industry Conference