From the Eugene Register-Guard:
Phones taxed for war
Within the last month, ABC news with Peter Jennings featured a woman concerned that the war tax imposed on telephone bills to raise money for the Spanish-American War is still in place. Originally 10 percent, it was dropped at the end of the Vietnam War, then reimposed the same day by the U.S. Congress. It was lowered by 1 percent a year for several years but has stood as a 3 percent federal excise tax for several years.
As a Quaker and pacifist, I have not paid my phone war tax for 30 years. When I pay my monthly phone bill, I always remind the phone company why I do not include the war tax so that the phone company can report that to the IRS.
The unpaid figure amounts to approximately $25 a year, which I always contribute to a recognized peace organization. To my great surprise, after ignoring this for all this time, the IRS recently sent me a bill for $7.21 for “unpaid phone taxes.” After several months a second bill arrived, this time with $1.01 added in “interest and penalty.”
I understand that phone companies hate to do this collecting for the IRS, since they get nothing for the service. According to the Oregon Community for War Tax Resistance, the tax has raised nearly $30 billion since 1966.
It is estimated that many thousands of phone users refuse to pay the 3 percent war tax on their bill. In effect, we are saying, “I cannot pay for killing.”
Constance P. Brown
Cottage Grove
