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McCook Gazette
Letter to the Editor

Land line tax

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Dear Editor,

Legislative bill 165 (LB 165) is a bill to remove the right of cities across Nebraska to levy a tax on land lines for both residential and business telephone customers. To express your support or opposition for this matter, write to Abbie Cornett (she chairs the Revenue Committee)

State Capitol, Room 1524, P. O. Box , Lincoln, NE 68509-4604.

In researching this matter, before our Legislature, I called our local City Treasurer Office, to ask where did this income appear, when does it enter the treasury and how is this money used?

The answer surprised me somewhat, these funds are placed into the General Funds Account. they are used to meet emergency financial crises whenever such crises occur.

I then considered how all of our tax monies are used by local, County, State and Federal treasuries. The many Public Service amenities we enjoy, you know Fire department equipment and Personnel, the cost of this equipment alone is huge, maintenance , garages, dormitories, gasolene, tires...all cheap bargain items, right? How about snow plows, more cheap stuff. I also found out what the tax percentage we are talking about, In North Platte and McCook, a whopping 3 percent, while most communities in Nebraska are assessed 5.5 percent and in Lincoln 6 percent.

This means in North Platte and McCook, we pay $0.54 each month. I gladly will continue to pay this $0.54 every month to guarantee that any Public Service Department in my town will have financial support when disaster strikes. I oppose the passage of LB 165 .

Ann McCoy

North Platte, Nebraska

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  • If I read your words right, Ann, the tax monies go into 'General' fund, and is 'used' for 'emergency financial crises ...'

    Please ponder the words you just used: 'General' fund is where money is placed to be used wherever our government decides, I believe, and has no accountability, once in the General fund.

    I love the term 'Emergency financial crises,' since every State, including ours, have announced being in exactly that, an 'Emergency financial crises.'

    I see no provision for holding the funds for local financial crises, or any crises other than what the State determines the money should be spent for. But then I may misunderstand, of course.

    If the money's went to the Local Governing body, and was designated for something other than the generic 'emergency,' I would probably agree with your evaluation. There is, of course the tax of 5.5 and 6 percent that the larger cities tax, so I presume the tax actually is stratified, some to the State, and some to the Local Government groups.

    This is what popped into my head, while reading your article. Retired folk, is but one facet of citizenry that cannot afford too much more taxation, I fear, and won't even try to address all the low income folk, who are trying to raise families. That would wear my fingers out. Ha.

    Thank you for bringing the subject up though.

    -- Posted by Navyblue on Tue, Jan 25, 2011, at 4:53 PM
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