Kevster

Tax Site Linkage

Treasury Announcement Linkage

The Treasury Department and IRS announced this morning that after losing in five circuit courts of appeals, the Government is throwing in the towel and will no longer seek to enforce the 3% excise tax on long-distance telephone calls enacted during the Spanish-American War of 1898 as a "luxury" tax on wealthy Americans who owned telephones. The IRS will will issue $15 billion in refunds to consumers for long-distance telephone service taxes paid over the past three years:

* No immediate action is required by taxpayers.
* Refunds will be a part of 2006 tax returns filed in 2007.
* Refund claims will cover all excise tax paid on long-distance service over the last three years (time allowed given statute of limitations).
* Interest will be paid on refunds.
* The IRS is working on a simplified method for individuals to use to claim a refund on their 2006 tax returns.
* Refunds will not include tax paid on local telephone service, which was not involved in the litigation.



This is welcome, though the idea that we're losing 15B in tax revenue that will just add to the deficit doesn't thrill me at all either. :/

I would guess that the phone service providers will have to issue statements to all their customers for how much tax they paid so they can get this refund on their FY2006 return.

__________________
I think over again
My small adventures, my fears.
The small ones that seemed so big,
For all the vital things I had to get and to reach.

And yet there is only one great thing, the only thing:

To live to see the great day that dawns,
And the light that fills the world.

-old Inuit song

gear02

So does that mean lawyers will receive 12 billion and we all receive a penny or something?

mcs328

Interesting. In my Sprint bill I got a letter to opt in for a lawsuit giving me like 17 bucks for taxes that I shouldn't have paid. I don't think it's related to this though. How would they know if you were a cell user for 3 years or two? I've been with sprint for almost 10 years now.

__________________

cheapie

man....just throw this money into schools or something.

Jeffbx

Why in the hell would they refund it?

Repeal the tax, OK, but use the money for something useful, for crying out loud. It's not like there's tons of excess cash just laying around these days.

Itsme

Not only will we get just a "penny", but it probably cost us $100 million in our taxes for the government to persue this great refund.