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  4. Taxes, Surcharges & Fees - Massachusetts

Taxes, Surcharges & Fees - Massachusetts

Below is a chart of the taxes, surcharges and fees that may appear on your bill.

TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D) IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S) DEFINITION Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Federal Excise Tax T C A federal tax on local telephone services and surcharges. Telephone
Federal Universal Service Fund T A, P A federal surcharge on interstate and international telephone services to support universal service programs such as the schools and libraries discount program. The Federal USF may also be assessed on phone surcharges. Telephone
State Sales Tax T, C, D C A tax levied by a state government on the sale or rental of tangible personal property and/or certain services such as telephone and cable services. Telephone, Cable, Data
Subscriber Line Charge T S Monthly recurring charge applied to all phone line, trunk, and PRI services offered pursuant to Astound’s tariffs and/or price lists. There are no exemptions associated with this product charge. Rates are subject to change. This charge is not government mandated nor a tax or fee imposed on you by the government. It is a surcharge Astound assesses and retains. Telephone
Port Charge T S This surcharge is assessed only on commercial customers using ISDN and DS-1 products. It is a recurring charge for the use of the port which interfaces and connects the local loop to a high-speed network. This charge is not government mandated nor a tax or fee imposed on you by the government. It is a surcharge Astound assesses and retains. Telephone
Regulatory Administration Fee T S This fee is assessed to recover the cost of complying with certain federal impositions related to voice service. It is a monthly charge to defray a portion of the fees paid to support government programs such as Telecommunications Relay Service and Local Number Portability, along with other charges assessed by the FCC, and additional indirect costs associated with administering and complying with government programs. This charge is not a customer tax or fee assessed by a government agency. It is a surcharge Astound assesses and retains. Telephone
Franchise Fee C A, P A fee paid to a municipality to allow use of the public streets and rights-of-way and operate a cable television system within that municipality. This is a contractual agreement with the town/city and is normally assessed on all cable revenue. Cable
OVS Fee – Cable C A, P A fee paid to a municipality to allow use of the public streets and rights-of-way and operate a cable television system within that municipality. This is a contractual agreement with the town/city and is normally assessed on all cable revenue. Cable
Use Fee T, C A, P This surcharge is paid to the Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department to access utility poles. Telephone, Cable, Data
Regulatory Fee C A, P This fee is an annual assessment imposed by the FCC pursuant to Public Law 103-66, Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993. The FCC uses these monies to offset costs associated with its enforcement, public service, international and policy and rulemaking activities. Cable
Network Access and Maintenance Fee D S A fee to defray costs associated with building and maintaining Astound’s fiber rich broadband network, as well as the costs of expanding network capacity to support the continued increase in customers’ average bandwidth consumption. This fee is not a government mandated tax or fee imposed on you by the government. This is a fee that Astound assesses and retains. Data
PEG Access Fee C A, P This fee is part of the OVS or Franchise agreement and is passed through to cable subscribers. The fee is to support Public, Educational, and Governmental facilities, equipment and services. Cable
911 Tax T C The E911 system utilizes a system to route emergency telephone calls to the appropriate Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). The enhanced 911 system allows the PSAP operator to automatically see the phone number and address of the person calling. The E911 fee covers the expenses for the E911 system. All lines (residential and commercial) are subject to a monthly E911 charge per line which is imposed by the state. Telephone
Broadcast Surcharge C S Recovery of a portion of the rapidly increasing costs charged by local broadcast TV stations for carriage rights. This fee is not a government mandated tax or fee imposed by the government. This is a fee Astound assesses and retains. Cable
Entertainment Surcharge C S Recovery of a portion of the rapidly escalating charges levied by entertainment networks such as Viacom, AMC, Scrippts Networks and others. This fee is not a government mandated tax or fee imposed by the government. This is a fee Astound assesses and retains. Cable
Sports Surcharge C S Recovery of a portion of the rapidly increasing costs of sports related programming. This fee is not a government mandated tax or fee imposed by the government. This is a fee Astound assesses and retains. Cable
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Federal Excise Tax
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
T
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
C
DEFINITION
A federal tax on local telephone services and surcharges.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Telephone
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Federal Universal Service Fund
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
T
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
A, P
DEFINITION
A federal surcharge on interstate and international telephone services to support universal service programs such as the schools and libraries discount program. The Federal USF may also be assessed on phone surcharges.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Telephone
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
State Sales Tax
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
T, C, D
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
C
DEFINITION
A tax levied by a state government on the sale or rental of tangible personal property and/or certain services such as telephone and cable services.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Telephone, Cable, Data
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Subscriber Line Charge
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
T
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
S
DEFINITION
Monthly recurring charge applied to all phone line, trunk, and PRI services offered pursuant to Astound’s tariffs and/or price lists. There are no exemptions associated with this product charge. Rates are subject to change. This charge is not government mandated nor a tax or fee imposed on you by the government. It is a surcharge Astound assesses and retains.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Telephone
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Port Charge
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
T
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
S
DEFINITION
This surcharge is assessed only on commercial customers using ISDN and DS-1 products. It is a recurring charge for the use of the port which interfaces and connects the local loop to a high-speed network. This charge is not government mandated nor a tax or fee imposed on you by the government. It is a surcharge Astound assesses and retains.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Telephone
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Regulatory Administration Fee
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
T
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
S
DEFINITION
This fee is assessed to recover the cost of complying with certain federal impositions related to voice service. It is a monthly charge to defray a portion of the fees paid to support government programs such as Telecommunications Relay Service and Local Number Portability, along with other charges assessed by the FCC, and additional indirect costs associated with administering and complying with government programs. This charge is not a customer tax or fee assessed by a government agency. It is a surcharge Astound assesses and retains.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Telephone
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Franchise Fee
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
C
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
A, P
DEFINITION
A fee paid to a municipality to allow use of the public streets and rights-of-way and operate a cable television system within that municipality. This is a contractual agreement with the town/city and is normally assessed on all cable revenue.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Cable
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
OVS Fee – Cable
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
C
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
A, P
DEFINITION
A fee paid to a municipality to allow use of the public streets and rights-of-way and operate a cable television system within that municipality. This is a contractual agreement with the town/city and is normally assessed on all cable revenue.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Cable
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Use Fee
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
T, C
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
A, P
DEFINITION
This surcharge is paid to the Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department to access utility poles.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Telephone, Cable, Data
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Regulatory Fee
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
C
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
A, P
DEFINITION
This fee is an annual assessment imposed by the FCC pursuant to Public Law 103-66, Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993. The FCC uses these monies to offset costs associated with its enforcement, public service, international and policy and rulemaking activities.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Cable
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Network Access and Maintenance Fee
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
D
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
S
DEFINITION
A fee to defray costs associated with building and maintaining Astound’s fiber rich broadband network, as well as the costs of expanding network capacity to support the continued increase in customers’ average bandwidth consumption. This fee is not a government mandated tax or fee imposed on you by the government. This is a fee that Astound assesses and retains.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Data
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
PEG Access Fee
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
C
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
A, P
DEFINITION
This fee is part of the OVS or Franchise agreement and is passed through to cable subscribers. The fee is to support Public, Educational, and Governmental facilities, equipment and services.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Cable
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
911 Tax
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
T
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
C
DEFINITION
The E911 system utilizes a system to route emergency telephone calls to the appropriate Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). The enhanced 911 system allows the PSAP operator to automatically see the phone number and address of the person calling. The E911 fee covers the expenses for the E911 system. All lines (residential and commercial) are subject to a monthly E911 charge per line which is imposed by the state.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Telephone
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Broadcast Surcharge
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
C
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
S
DEFINITION
Recovery of a portion of the rapidly increasing costs charged by local broadcast TV stations for carriage rights. This fee is not a government mandated tax or fee imposed by the government. This is a fee Astound assesses and retains.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Cable
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Entertainment Surcharge
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
C
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
S
DEFINITION
Recovery of a portion of the rapidly escalating charges levied by entertainment networks such as Viacom, AMC, Scrippts Networks and others. This fee is not a government mandated tax or fee imposed by the government. This is a fee Astound assesses and retains.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Cable
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES
Sports Surcharge
TAXES, FEES & SURCHARGES FOR: Telephone (T), Cable (C), or Data (D)
C
IMPOSED ON: Customer (C), Astound (A), Astound passed through to Customer (A, P) or Surcharge imposed by Astound (S)
S
DEFINITION
Recovery of a portion of the rapidly increasing costs of sports related programming. This fee is not a government mandated tax or fee imposed by the government. This is a fee Astound assesses and retains.
Location on the Bill where the charge appears in the Tax, Surcharge or Fee Section
Cable