IRS to refund federal excise tax on long-distance calls

Getting the government to send you a $30 tax refund isn't quite as good as finding $30 that you didn't know you had in a pair of jeans, but we'll take it nonetheless. Yesterday, the IRS announced that it is refunding the "federal excise tax", or a tax collected on long-distance telephone calls made on landlines, VoIP lines, and cell phones for calls made from March 2003 until August 2006. Consumers can expect to claim a $30-$60 refund on their 2006 tax returns, and if as many people claim the refund as the IRS estimates, the American public will reap a total of $10 billion. Now that this is settled, that leaves one problem remaining: being that this tax was first put in place to fund the Spanish-American War (yeah, the one that ended over 100 years ago), which made us wonder -- what if we go to war with Spain again?

[Via The Associated Press]

[Tek @ Sep 1st 2006 4:09PM]

Gee, everyone is mysteriously refunding 'tax fees' in America as of late. Which makes you wonder--just what is legit? And who else can I get to gimme my money back!!

[teo @ Sep 1st 2006 4:11PM]

Don't worry, I'm sure there's a lock box somewhere with the stored $500B that they've saved from this tax over the last 100 years. (Dollar/person averaged based on census records from 1900-2000).
That should take care of a few wars, uh oops. I mean one ME war.

[Jack @ Sep 1st 2006 5:16PM]

Just what taxes are legit? Most of them. This excise tax just didn't get repealed when it should have. Now the federal income tax on the other hand. The one you would have to pay in order to get the IRS's "refund." That one is complete bubkiss. $30-$60 refund? I used to pay that much every week in income tax.

[sosei @ Sep 1st 2006 6:51PM]

This is kinda funny, seeing as though I work for the IRS.

[Pep @ Sep 2nd 2006 2:00AM]

Hey hey, I live in Spain, leave us alone, you Americans and your wars. Keep your tax problems to yourselves!

:-D

[fil @ Sep 2nd 2006 3:04PM]

funny that there's no accrued interest on these refunds, and yet if i paid my taxes this late, i'd be reamed.

[ElectroGeek @ Sep 2nd 2006 11:01PM]

Makes you wonder what other secret redundant taxes we're paying doesn't it. The amount of taxes we pay on communications is ridiculous. Oh yeah and then there's gas,food,estate,lottery winnings,alcohol, etc... and so on and so on.. Welcome to America. The land of the free and the home of the taxed.

[Teresa @ Nov 15th 2006 5:31PM]

Ya wanna know what makes me so mad? Working our a____ off and at the end of the year, if ya make too much money (what the govt. considers too much), we have to pay them. Now that's a crock of you know what! And the telecommunications taxes, now there's another story. ElectroGeek is right, land of the free and home of the 'Taxed!'