The Cook County Board of Commissioners has proposed a new tax of $48 per phone per line year, could increase phone rates  much as 131%! The proposed tax would apply to every phone line – even to every fax line, cell phone and DSL or Broad band line. The new proposed tax would also increase every year at the rate of inflation. This means that in five years, the total tax would be more than $250 per phone! If passed, this tax would hit the pocketbooks of all consumers and businesses in Cook County IL.

If this tax passes business circuits including integrated voice and data T1and PRI circuits could become more attractive then ever. A T1 or PRI can deliver as many as 24 channels (lines) on a single circuit. The tax would be $ 4.00. The cost for the typical Chicago area business with 5 lines would go up as much as $ 1,260.00

Creating a new phone tax – on top of the many federal, state and local taxes that consumers already pay for each phone line – is not the answer.

For more information on the tax go to http://www.nophonetax.org/about.php