State tax force ham repeaters shut down

[n4voxgill]

Washington amateur radio repeater sites subject to tax
Mar 1, 2007 2:53 PM, - MRT

The American Radio Relay League’s Western Washington Section is seeking support for a state bill that would exempt amateur radio repeater owners from paying an excise tax based on the commercial value of repeater sites. The issue surfaced after state of Washington’s Department of Revenue interpreted the tax code to include repeater site leaseholds and, therefore, deemed them subject to a leasehold excise tax amounting to 12.5% of the fair-market value of the space used by the tower and the site. Visit www.arrl.org for additional information

 

[N_Jay]

Washington amateur radio repeater sites subject to tax
Mar 1, 2007 2:53 PM, - MRT

The American Radio Relay League’s Western Washington Section is seeking support for a state bill that would exempt amateur radio repeater owners from paying an excise tax based on the commercial value of repeater sites. The issue surfaced after state of Washington’s Department of Revenue interpreted the tax code to include repeater site leaseholds and, therefore, deemed them subject to a leasehold excise tax amounting to 12.5% of the fair-market value of the space used by the tower and the site. Visit www.arrl.org for additional information

What repeater was shut down?

 

[im800mhz]

It's the standard way State gov collects fees around here. When all of the commercial SMR's, and community repeaters went by the wayside in Puget Sound, the DNR lost a lot of revenue. You should see the brand new building at Rattlesnake. Just a couple of DNR base stations and a few paging TX'ers. The radio sites are no longer the money maker they used to be, because of the availablity of Nextel and cell providers. They have to generate new $$$ and this is how they are going to do it.