Extra Cost on Your Wireless Bill
In addition to the monthly per unit access charge, the following charges
may be applied to your monthly invoice based on the type of wireless service
you have and your geographical location:
- Federal Excise Tax
- Federal Programs Cost Recovery Fee
- State and Local Taxes
- State & Local Required 911 Charges
- Telecommunications Relay Service Surcharge
- Universal Service Fund Surcharge
Federal Excise Tax
Telephone services are subject to a 3% federal excise tax. The tax does
not apply to dispatch excess airtime services or the sale of phones and/or
accessories. The tax is collected by your service provider and remitted
to the Internal Revenue Service. Exemption under the income tax laws does
not necessarily qualify you for exemption under the excise tax laws.
Federal Programs Cost Recovery Fee
The Federal Programs Cost Recovery Fee is a monthly fee of $0.55 per
unit, per month that reflects Your carrier's cost of complying with Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) rules and initiatives advancing Enhanced
911, Telephone Number Pooling, and Wireless Number Portability.
Enhanced 911 is a technology that will help emergency response agencies
determine the location of anyone who dials 911 from their enhanced wireless
phone.
Telephone Number Pooling will allow your carrier to assign customers
new telephone numbers more efficiently. This will, in turn, help to conserve
the nation's numbering resources and potentially reduce the need for new
area codes in the United States.
Wireless Number Portability will enable you to keep the same phone number
when changing to a new service provider within the same local area. This
will work for both cellular and landline services. Network upgrades and
changes are necessary for your carrier to offer this convenience to customers
in compliance with federal requirements.
State and Local Taxes
States, counties, cities, and special taxing districts may assess various
taxes on wireless communication services and/or the sales and rentals
of wireless phones. Applicable taxes are collected by your carrier and
remitted to the jurisdiction that is assessing the tax.
State & Local Required 911 Charges
Some states and localities require wireless carriers to collect a fee
for 911 funds. These fees vary by state and locality.
Telecommunications Relay Service Surcharge
All telecommunication service providers are required to contribute to
the Federal Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) Fund in order to finance
the provision of telecommunications relay services. Telecommunications
relay services enable hearing and speech impaired persons to send and
receive messages to and from persons whose telephones are not equipped
with specialized telecommunications equipment. Generally, carriers recovers
the cost of these contributions through a 0.073% monthly surcharge on
customers' bills.
Universal Service Fund Surcharge
All telecommunication service providers are required to contribute to
the Federal Universal Service Fund. The universal service fund subsidizes
programs for schools, libraries, and rural health care providers. Generally,
carriers recovers the cost of these contributions through a 1.2% monthly
surcharge on customers' bills.
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