Florida Governor Rick Scott Seeks Relief for Wireless Consumers

A number of states around the country have begun legislative work for the calendar year.  While each state has different priorities as well as different challenges, what they have in common is that taxpayers are in need of serious relief.  One state where taxpayers could soon see some good news is Florida, where a new proposal to cut taxes has emerged that could benefit wireless consumers statewide who are feeling the pain of high excise taxes on their cell phone bill.

Sunshine State Governor Rick Scott is pushing a massive tax cut that will include a lowering of the state’s wireless tax rate for all cell phone users. Reid Wilson of The Washington Post reported on the plan in January:

Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) will ask the state legislature to cut $470 million in taxes residents pay on cellphone and television bills, the first in what he hopes will be $1 billion in cuts over the next two years.

Scott’s plan would cut the cellphone and TV tax rate by 3.6 percent, from 9.17 percent on nonresidential landlines, cellphone and cable services. The cut would also apply to a 13.17 percent tax paid on satellite television services.

Wireless consumers are burdened every month with a slew of taxes that provide little explanation but heavy weight to their bill. Last October, a report from the Tax Foundation found that the average taxes on wireless combining state/federal/local are just over 17 percent.  The report also showed the size and scale of just how many individuals were impacted by wireless taxes noting that 90 percent of adult Americans have a cellphone, and 58 percent of adult Americans have a smartphone.

Those in Florida who are a part of that overall 90 percent are now faced with the real possibility that rates could be lowered on that monthly bill, and this is welcome news that Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) supports. The Communications Services tax cut is something that Governor Scott has been pressing over the last month, taking his case to the court of public opinion and it may be working. Kevin Derby over at the Sunshine State News noted some recent positive developments:

Gov. Rick Scott’s, R-Fla., plan to reduce Florida’s Communications Sales Tax (CST) by more than $470 million cleared a Florida Senate committee on Tuesday as it continues to pick up steam. Scott has called reducing the CST one of his top legislative priorities in 2015.

The Senate Communications, Energy, and Public Utilities Committee unanimously passed a bill from Sen. Dorothy Hukill, R-Port Orange, advancing Scott’s agenda of cutting taxes on wireless phone and cable television services. The bill now heads to the Finance and Tax Committee.

The tax cut for wireless consumers in Florida is not assured but it is important that the momentum continue for the proposal. State legislators in Florida will continue to work towards getting a budget deal done.  This is potentially good news for taxpayers and consumers in Florida.  But, before there’s any celebration, the state legislature and Governor need to finish the job by passing the bill and making sure it becomes law.