This is unrelated to Verizon’s fee refunds, but the IRS is refunding taxpayers between $30 and $60 if they paid for long distance between March 2003 and July 2006. This is a separate issue in which the government instituted an excise tax during the Spanish-American War. That was back in the 19th century.
In May, the government repealed the tax and now the IRS has announced details about the refund:
If you want to fish through 41 months worth of phone bills to calculate how much you actually paid, you can claim that amount on your return. Otherwise, the IRS announced Thursday you can claim $30 if you’re filing a 2006 return with one exemption; $40 for two exemptions; $50 for three exemptions and $60 for four or more exemptions.
Businesses will be able to able to claim a refund as well, based on the actual amount paid.
At the beginning of the month, I mentioned I had been getting 12 Mbps cable internet for $29.99 a month. Download speeds average between 10 and 12 Mbps. The promotion has elapsed and I’m now being charged $52.95, the normal price for the “ultra-fast” 8 Mbps connection.
Lately, I’ve been feeling the pain of my reduced cable television. I’m only paying $16 a month, but I’m only getting 30 channels. I don’t watch television often, but sometimes I wish I had a better selection. I have no Comedy Central, no permium movie channels.
Meanwhile, I’m also paying for Netflix every month, yet I haven’t watched many movies. Perhaps now, without having to do classwork every night, I’ll be able to enjoy more “Flexo time.”
The final Question of the Day is being hosted at Get Rich Slowly, so take a minute to answer this question over there: What does money mean to you? The full schedule is contained below. Read the full article →
On Friday, I mentioned that the FCC got involved in investigating an unscrupulous decision by Verizon DSL to continue charging a fee that was no longer required by the government.
Reuters reports that Verizon gave into market pressure (well, mostly pressure from the regulators) and have dropped the fee.