Show A4 Sanpete MesJfenger imons Sanpete Valley Edition Messenger-Gunniso- n n&g Phone lax may make sense but it was done too quietly need to be wary about taxes tacked onto our telephone bills Federal state and local government are often able to impose taxes on phone bills quietly without the public notice and discussion required for property tax increases for instance A Utah Taxpayer’s Association official analyed his ow n bill and found that 6 percent of the charges were taxes One of those taxes a federal excise tax was imposed in 1898 when telephones were a luxury to finance the War It's never come off It billion a year for the now' generates tax coffers federal general So when at state direction the county commission and all city councils in Sanpete started passing resolutions raising a local lax for 911 services from 2 cents) we fejt we 53 to 65 cents should Ux)k into it Here's the story: For several years Utah law has authorized municipalities or in unincorporated counties to impose a tax on each telephone line and each cell phone to support 911 In Sanpete 9 services are delivered on a countywide basis None of our small towns by itself can afford the We computeried telephone tracking staff a 9 system equipment or requires So as a condition of receiving 91 services all towns turn over proceeds from their 9 telephone taxes to the county For years 911 dispatch centers nationw ide hae been capable of tracing calls from land lines and sending help in cases where the caller is unable to provide his or her location Recently the Federal Communication Commission which regulates telephone traffic nationwide has issued rules requiring cell phone manufacturers and 911 dispatch centers to get technology set up so cell phone locations can be tracked as well The ICC has defined two phases of making cell phones effective emergency tixils Phase One is enabling discharge centers to determine a caller's cell phone number so the dispatch center can call someone back Sanpete County is already Phase One compliant Phase Two is more complicated In this phase phones wireless towers and dispatch centers will be set up to identify a cell caller's longitude and latitude using global positioning satellite technology Most dispatch centers along the Wasatch Front are already Phase Two compliant but most rural dispatch centers such as our Sanpete Sheriff’s Office aren’t But under a law passed by the 2(X)4 Legislature all Utah dispatch centers must become Phase 2 compliant by Dec 31 2005 The fee increase is for costs to enable equipment and Sanpete to meet the 2005 target The county commission and all 13 city or town councils in the county have approved the hike In case you didn’t notice it went on your bill effective July Actually the local option increase is just part of the phone bill hike The Legislature mandated an additional tax which brings the total of the two increases to 25 cents The state increase fits into the goal of linking up 91 service and cell phones because it will support expansion of cell phone infrastructure in rural areas In fact it could reduce the number of “dead spots” in Sanpete County As several recent incidents along the Wasatch Front have demonstrated making it possible for 91 centers to locate cell phones is an important step forward in emergency services In May a woman her husband and friend were hiking on Mt Olympus in Salt Lake County The woman fell into a ravine between a rock and a block of ice Her husband called 91 on his cell phone A search and rescue team was able to locate the party break away the ice and carry the seriously injured woman to a clearing where a medical helicopter took her to the hospital One disappointing aspect of the hike is that the Legislature authorized telephone companies to keep 4 cents — of the funds — to cover the administrative costs of collecting the tax It appears the increase is a better deal for phone companies than for the public That brings us back to our opening point about phone bills being a vehicle for collecting taxes We’re confident that if the county collected the 2 cents nearly the whole amount would go for 911 upgrades But considering how much some Sanpete residents yelped recently over a proposed property tax increase maybe it’s a good thing that the 12 cents for making cell phones effective emergency tools has been quietly tucked into a bill we pay without giving it a thought Wednesday September 1 2004 onsi-mr- D David meets Goliath in public heritage area meeting “David meets Goliath” aptly describes the scene at the Aug 24 Sanpete County public hearing on the designation of US 89 counties as a “national heritage area” Three professional gov- Comments and questions were not held to three minutes for Under the cirall participants cumstances I thought Mr tion VanDyke presented public concerns quite well The Utah Heritage Highway 89 Alliance the travel arts and preservation group that has prowould be moted the legislation appointed to manage the natural and cultural resources of the area The Alliance would receive up to $10 million in federal matching money for promoting ernment officials challenged Brad VanDyke who represented those who want public information hearings and participation or have concerns about potential negative impacts of the legislation The meeting was often out of control according to rules of order County commissioner projects Monte Greg Dettinger who conducted the hearing gave a speech in vor of the federal land designa whether he would decide wheri any of the money was spent He also denied being funded by any! one but himself for the expensive travel along the US 89 corridor to promote thi bill The national heritage are promoters did not effectively ant swer how they would deal with negative social and economic impacts of government tourisni promotion that have been seen in other areas The majority attending seemed skeptical of yet an other federal project executive Bona of the Alliance evaded answering my question as to rector Roger Kunz Mt Pleasant The Sanpete County Fair Board would like to express their appreciation to each citizen who attended the fair A big “Thank You” for your support We hope you all found something that you enjoyed while at the fair To all the sponsors businesses exhibitors and participants we add our thanks and appreciation It is your help and involvement that makes the fair a success every year Sincerely The Sanpete County Fair Board 91 GM &ceentwe Salem North 5D m Main manti 8351 961 fitness 111 Seine Anni Mulder Therapeutic Massage Therapist nm specialises in FULL - PART BODY MASSAGE PRENATAL MASSAGE SPORTS MASSAGE REELEXOLOGY Introducing the new Sinclair Platinum MasterCard owsn or 'malms roues' ousts is fAJItVtiW ® You II earn 5 on purchases at Sinclair and on all purchases For the first 60 days your account is open you'll earn a bonus of 7 at Sinclair and 2 on all your purchases The card is good wherever MasterCard is accepted and there is no annual fee 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