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Show ; ' . ..... i, 4 v " 1-'"' ; ' - - -. .' - ., , ., , , .-I i 1 1 1 Cedar Hills City Hikes Tele-communications Service Provider Tax by Harlow Clark With one nay vole Cedar Mills's City Council voted June 15 to raise the telecommunications telecommunica-tions service provider tax from 3.3 to 3.5 percent. The city's new budget projects $1,700 to $5,000 (or maybe $7,000) raised from the tax. "If we don't have to do this I would prefer not to," Council Member Ken Kirk said, noting that it's supposed to be a tax on service providers, but they'll just pass it on to their customers custom-ers . Asked what he would cut to make up the $5,000 loss, Kirk said he didn't have the budget in front of him, "but I will come up with $5,000 worth of budget cuts." The tax adds about 18 cents a month to a household's bill. Kirk said, but with 20 cents here and 72 cents there for liMT and lire services, for things the city has to have, he would rather not add a tax they could get by without. with-out. Kirk added, "And what would probably come back and ship me in the face is the telecommunications tele-communications companies would raise their costs anyway, which would really lick me off." A couple of council members thought the providers would raise their rates anyway, and one said that about half the people in Cedar 1 1 ills have Pleasant Grove on their telecommunications bills, so CVilar I litis doesn't get their taxes. I )ui ill)', n discussion about nmcniliiig the budget. Council Member Marisa Wright said. "1 wonder if this is one against four." "I've been on the one side before," be-fore," Kirk said. "1 have, too. I have, too. You all know I have," Wright replied. re-plied. Council Member Scott .lack-man .lack-man voted to adopt the rate increase in-crease effective Oct. I and said he'd be willing to revisit the budget. Mayor I '.ric Richardson asked City Manager Konrad llildeb-randt, llildeb-randt, "Could you be sure the budget's on the agenda for the next work session, for discussion?" discus-sion?" Kirk voted no, everyone else yes. "Hasn't been the lirst time," he said. "Nor the last probably," Wright added. |
