Taxes

comfortably_numb

Dogs have owners, cats have staff
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Nov 30, 2011
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First off, I think it's pretty well known that the only advantages to owning equipment is.............first, you don't have to enter a contract when you buy your own equipment.............and second, you can turn service off and on without having to return equipment.

Secondly, I don't see how you can determine what they're taxing by your statement. I think you have to pay a receiver fee, even if you own your equipment. So, the tax wouldn't be on the sales of any equipment, but on the equipment fees themselves. In other words, they're not taxing your equipment, they're taxing the equipment fee. I'm just guessing, because $1.71 tax on $19.00 is 9% not 4.225%.

I didn't say that I determined it was 4.225%. DIRT said it's 4.225%. You're correct that $1.71 is 9% of $19, not 4.225%
 

ChadT41

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Likely it is being charged towards $19 receiver fees, and $12 dvr service fee. There may be something else, but if they tax you on the cost of the original receiver, although not charged the receiver fee it still being an outlet service, would make sense.
 

Troch77

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Apr 4, 2015
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Southern PA
First off, I think it's pretty well known that the only advantages to owning equipment is.............first, you don't have to enter a contract when you buy your own equipment.............and second, you can turn service off and on without having to return equipment.

Secondly, I don't see how you can determine what they're taxing by your statement. I think you have to pay a receiver fee, even if you own your equipment. So, the tax wouldn't be on the sales of any equipment, but on the equipment fees themselves. In other words, they're not taxing your equipment, they're taxing the equipment fee. I'm just guessing, because $1.71 tax on $19.00 is 9% not 4.225%.
The reason PA described was because you are buying their monthly entertainment, which is not tax free.
My 6% is across the board. Doesn't matter if anything is owned.
 

jerryez

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Sep 8, 2003
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Most states charge a tax on services. Cable, sat, phone, Electricity, water, sewage etc. It is a sales tax on the services that you are buying. You get a massage and you pay service tax. LIKE IT OR VOTE FOR SOMEONE RUNNING ON THE PROMISE TO LOWER TAXES AND THEN THEY WILL GO UP ANYWAY. THE PEOPLE IN MY COUNTY APPROVED A .5 CENT SALES TAX ABOVE WHAT THE STATE CHARGES. PEOPLE LOVE TO BE TAXED.
In Florida we pay 11.44 percent tax on satellite services, So stop your complaining. Even cable does not pay that much tax.
 

jerryez

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Actually, its called a communications service tax. Mine this month was $7.04 on a $66 Dish bill. But, we do not have a state income tax. Does Missouri?
 

thomasjk

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Jan 10, 2006
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My bill includes a Video Communications Tax as well as State and Local Sales Tax. The total is $6.40 thanks to our wonderful NC legislature.
 

dare2be

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Jul 15, 2011
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Actually, its called a communications service tax. Mine this month was $7.04 on a $66 Dish bill. But, we do not have a state income tax.
Yeah, I'll take that trade off any day. I'd rather pay 11-14% in communications and entertainment/tourist taxes than to pay even 1% in income taxes. Every state is going to get their money to stay in operation somehow. States that don't have any sales/service taxes will have higher income or property taxes, and vice-versa.
 

visiter555

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Jan 11, 2006
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Pembina, ND
Actually, it is because Dish (they love to charge you!) charges you for owning a receiver. So whether you own it or lease it Dish charges you $7 or !0 or whatever as a "fee".

The state then charges tax on the FEE.

If Dish wasn't gouging the owners of equipment with their "receiver" fees you wouldn't pay a tax as there would be no fee.

Bell & StarChoice in Canada and others in the EU don't pay an additional 9gouging) fee on owned equipment only on leased/rented equipment.

Call it whatever you want Dish Reps, but it is a non service fee.

They even tried charging me a replacement receiver on an owned two month old 722 receiver due to an under warranty failure) as it was, wait for it... "owned, not leased"
 
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ChadT41

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There are no leased receiver fees. Only active outlet fees. If your receiver is deactivated, there are no charges that apply. If it leased, and you deactivate it, unreturned equipment fees may still apply. Just because it is owned or leased does not change that it is an active outlet. The alternative for someone is they can either do their cable card, or they can start their own tv compny and charge whatever they would like.
 
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Hall

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Feb 14, 2004
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Contact your state's attorney general's office if you feel it's being charged or applied wrong. If everything ends up proper, you need to complain to your congressional rep to eliminate the tax.
 

Tampa8

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Actually, it is because Dish (they love to charge you!) charges you for owning a receiver. So whether you own it or lease it Dish charges you $7 or !0 or whatever as a "fee".

The state then charges tax on the FEE.

If Dish wasn't gouging the owners of equipment with their "receiver" fees you wouldn't pay a tax as there would be no fee.

Bell & StarChoice in Canada and others in the EU don't pay an additional 9gouging) fee on owned equipment only on leased/rented equipment.

Call it whatever you want Dish Reps, but it is a non service fee.

They even tried charging me a replacement receiver on an owned two month old 722 receiver due to an under warranty failure) as it was, wait for it... "owned, not leased"

Wrong on about everything. But it has been posted about to death already.
 
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JosephB

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Dec 21, 2004
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except.. for some reason Internet.

Congress passed a nationwide ban on internet access taxes back in the 90s to ostensibly promote the spread of internet services. It's never been repealed. You can guarantee there would be similar taxes on internet service if it were legal. And you can go ahead and assume it will happen eventually. When enough people cut their cable or satellite service (remember, with cable you pay a franchise fee that you don't pay on satellite) and the tax revenues drop, Congress will drop the internet service tax ban.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Tax_Freedom_Act
 

The Fat Man

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In NH, there isn't any sales tax. But don't let that fool you. I pay out big chunks of change on my property, which is less than a half acre. Just diagnolly across my street, in MA, my neighbors pay tax on everything. Long story short, it's up to how much your state feels it deserves money for every time you take a...
 

bobvick

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In NH, there isn't any sales tax. But don't let that fool you. I pay out big chunks of change on my property, which is less than a half acre. Just diagnolly across my street, in MA, my neighbors pay tax on everything. Long story short, it's up to how much your state feels it deserves money for every time you take a...

We have a high sales tax in Alabama, some municipalities as much as 10.5%, we also have an income tax, but it is not that bad, you can deduct any Federal amount paid, and the State doesn't tax Social Security or most Pensions. The property tax is great here, I have 80 acres, a 2,000 sq ft home, and several outbuildings and pay about $475 per year. I had rather have the high sales tax and income tax than exorbitant property taxes.
 

ChadT41

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$475 is ridiculously low. I wish that's how much I had to pay for my 3/4 acre property... I pay about $1100 per year.
 

bobvick

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$475 is ridiculously low. I wish that's how much I had to pay for my 3/4 acre property... I pay about $1100 per year.
The State and county have a generous homestead exemption. I live in a rural county, and in an unincorporated part of the county, so there is no municipal tax. If you live in Greater Birmingham or Huntsville/Decatur Metro, you will pay more.
 

KAB

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We have a high sales tax in Alabama, some municipalities as much as 10.5%, we also have an income tax, but it is not that bad, you can deduct any Federal amount paid, and the State doesn't tax Social Security or most Pensions. The property tax is great here, I have 80 acres, a 2,000 sq ft home, and several outbuildings and pay about $475 per year. I had rather have the high sales tax and income tax than exorbitant property taxes.
Benefit of farm zoning, but way lower than my 5 acre "farm".
 

bobvick

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Benefit of farm zoning, but way lower than my 5 acre "farm".
I forget what they call the exemption for the 40 acre parcel that I have that is separate from the parcel my home is on, "current use" or something like that, I am supposed to be "growing timber" on it, which it is :)
 

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