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From: lmg@mtqub.att.com (Lawrence M Geary)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Proposed 10% Federal Tax on "Electronic Equipment"
Message-ID: <12892@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 1 Oct 90 17:03:11 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 703, Message 1 of 15


In article <12847@accuvax.nwu.edu>, lauren@vortex.com (Lauren
Weinstein) writes:

(Paraphrased):

> On Sunday, September 30, agreement was reached by the federal budget
> negotiators on a proposed new budget, including a variety of program
> cuts and new/increased taxes. There is one brand new tax in the
> agreement that might be of particular importance to readers of this
> forum.  This is a new "luxury" tax of 10% ... [that] will apply on
> items such as "luxury cars", furs, jewelry, and *electronic equipment*.

"Electronic equipment" over $1000. This has the perverse effect of
taxing some basic items like an $1100 stereo receiver while exempting
some "high end" items like $900 phono cartridges. I suppose systems
could be decomposed into individual parts < $1000 each to get around
the tax. God help us if Congress starts to add exemptions and
qualifications to this one.

> It might be worthwhile for everyone who is involved in the purchase of
> "electronic equipment" to carefully track the details of this
> significant new proposed tax as they come forth, and make their
> opinions known to their House/Senate members.

This budget agreement bears all the marks of an unstoppable freight
train.  Congress takes a hatchet to the tax code and federal programs
with no eye toward fairness, consistency or good sense, but with one
goal in mind: squeeze as much additional money out of the taxpayers as
possible. They then brand anyone who objects to these wholesale random
changes as "nit pickers and naysayers". (And that was the
Republicans!) They aren't interested in logical arguments, and they
are braced for the onslaught of protests from every affected group.

Make those electronic purchases you've been putting off *now*.


Larry Geary: 74017.3065@compuserve.com | Turn out a light for Astronomy
	     lmg@mtqub.att.com         |