Proposition S: The Twenty Five Cent Email Tax

A little known and discussed provision of Proposition S on the Los Angeles City ballot on Tuesday, February 5th would allow for the taxing of internet service by the City of Los Angeles. Talk is that could wind up costing you twenty five cents per email sent and received if that portion of the plan is activated.

Day one from passage of Proposition S taxes will be assessed every time you send a text message or use minutes in your plan.

What you don't know about Prop S is that it creates a corporate loophole that essentially leads you to subsidize the phone and internet service of large media conglomerates and the portion of taxes paid by telemarketers. That is, they pay less than you.

The tax is listed on the ballot as a reduction. This is not true, the tax is going from 0% to 9%. It also has been promoted as a measure to raise funds for police and fire protection. This is also not true; nothing in the measure guarantees such funding.

Once again the politicians have clowned you.

Top Ten Reasons To Vote No on Proposition S

From the home office in North Hollywood, California...

The Top Ten reasons to vote No on Proposition S...

10 - City Hall wastes our money on things like $500,000 for calligraphy and $18,000 for sphincter control classes. And that's just the start...

9 - Business, homeowner, consumer and neighborhood organizations oppose it.

8 - The ballot language is intentionally deceptive, untrue and a shady effort by the Mayor to bamboozle you.

7 - Nobody cooler than Joseph Mailander opposes this crooked proposition and he'll be on the radio Thursday (KPCC FM 89.3, 10:30 a.m.) to let the people know about it.

6 - The Mayor's airing deceptive TV commercials starring Chief Bratton that misleads the people on the Proposition.

5 - Both unions and developers support Proposition S. That's enough of a reason itself to say no.

4 - Proposition S would tax internet service.

3 - The LA Times supports the measure; but doesn't tell you they don't have to pay the tax.

2 - Those pesky telemarketers who call you during dinner only have to pay half as much tax as you.

And the number one reason to vote no on Proposition S

1 - Every time you get a text message for a booty call, you'll have to pay Antonio Villaraigosa.

Mayor's Office Chickens Out from Walter Moore Phone Tax Radio Debate

Walter Moore reports that he was "un-invited" from a scheduled public radio debate on the phone tax mesaure, Proposition S, at the request of the Mayor's office.

According to Moore radio station KPCC was told representatives of the Mayor's office would not appear on a debate over the measure if Moore were to appear presenting the con side of the argument - even though Walter is the designated opponent in the official City sample ballot!

Their alternate choice? Our own Joseph Mailander, who recently published his own anti-Prop S take in the local fishwrap of record.

What is the Mayor's team afraid of? That Walter would clean their clock? Indeed he would. But so will Joe.

Its also interesting to note that a number of Neighborhood Councils have invited Walter to present his views on Proposition S had recently canceled his appearance at the last minute. Did they receive back room pressure from the Mayor's office? Correction: It was scheduled proponents of Proposition S who cancelled THEIR appearances ostensibly upon hearing of Moore's scheduled appearance. Moore was however allowed to make his presenation and in the cases where the Council in question took a vote on Proposition S, they all voted to oppose the tax measure. Still a number of Neighborhood Councils have endorsed a NO vote on Proposition S including the Northridge West Neighborhood Council, the Sherman Oaks Neighborhood Council, the Reseda Neighborhood Council and the Sunland-Tujunga Neighborhood Council. During many of Walter's appearances at such meetings, City staffers would stand up and speak and say "I'm not allowed to campaign for or against Proposition S," following which they would begin to campaign for Measure S.

I saw exactly this myself at the Mid Town North Hollywood Neighborhood Council when a representative of the Mayor's office did the very same thing.

Update: I had requested my own Neighborhood Council agendize discussion of Proposition S at it's last meeting and was essentially denied such without securing participation of someone from the Mayor's office to speak in favor of it. Still, a number of Council board members did express their personal opposition to Proposition S and this came from several people who rarely agree with one another on anything.

When you have a Mayor who puts a mis-leading tax increase measure on the ballot, one that will tax your landline, text messages, internet service, etc., runs dishonest television commercials featuring the Chief of Police, illegally uses city staffers to campaign for the measure and then chickens out on a debate, you realize how sad things have become in Los Angeles.

Vote No on Proposition S!

Don't Let Them Tax Your Text Messages!

The local fishwrap of record comes out in favor of Proposition S, what they don't tell you is they're exempt from it.

Proposition S is an anti-consumer, regressive tax that has people from all parts of the political spectrum opposing it (except elected officials, public employee unions and downtown developers) including an 87 year old advocate for equal access to the Internet.

Proposition S has a bastard cousin of it's own in Pasadena in Measure D, a very similar measure. FreedomWorks is an organization working to defeat the Pasadena proposal; stay tuned for more.

In calling for spending cuts, the Mayor didn't miss a chance to serve up more scare tactics to get you to pay more on your landline, cell phone and internet bills. Mayor Villaraigosa told reporters "If Prop S were to fail, we'd have to cut public safety,'' Villaraigosa said. "There's no way around it. It's two-thirds of (the city's) budget. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure it out.'' Yet, WalterMoore - who's not a rocket scientist but actually went to an accredited law school and passed the bar unlike the Mayor - has spelled out where the City has and wastes the money we need for public safety.

Boi from Troy details how some business groups had the balls to come out against Proposition S but others have wimped out and taken a neutral stand.

Proposition S Shady Update for Tuesday

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory reports an asteroid between 500 to 2000 feet wide will pass within 334, 0000 miles of Earth Tuesday morning. Expect shortly thereafter that the Mayor will declare without the passage of Proposition S, the big rock will turn around and slam into our planet.

In the meantime, a cash strapped city has plans for a $36 million city funded gentrification of Broadway even though the Latino business owners, workers and shoppers who've kept the famous district afloat for years aren't taking to the idea of their tax dollars being spent to bring in yuppies to put them out of business. Broadway has potential, but its pretty vibrant at present. Anyone who wants to develop it should put their own money into it. In the meantime, Walter Moore points out the disconnect between bureaucrats crying city poverty on one hand and others passing out the tax money on the other.

The next part is almost too good to be true. Yet again the Mayor has provided us with our daily laugh. In an effort to do his part about the City's sagging finances, the Mayor is "asking employees to take unpaid vacation days, return city cars and issuing fewer cellphones and Blackberries." It is however not clear whether this directive applies to the Mayor and his staff.

If you didn't catch Joe Mailander's excellent op-ed piece in the Fishwrap of Record, be sure to check it out.

When you tell your friends about Proposition S and the increase in taxes on their cell phone, text messages and internet service make sure they know all about the 27% employee salary increases, the tax breaks given to the owners of the Staples Center that matches dollar for dollar the estimated tax revenues from Proposition S and all the shady ways the Mayor has bamboozled you. But its okay - he's cutting back on BlackBerrys. Of course he is - he doesn't want the City to have to pay the extra tax!

Bratton Prop S Commercial: The Big Lie

It began with Mayor Villaraigosa calling it a "tax reduction." Remember however - you can not reduce a tax that doesn't exist.

The shady ballot designation. The scare tactics about not having money for police officers. All of which has been disproved by folks like Walter Moore and Daily News Editor Ron Kaye.

"Every year, LA's general fund revenues grow at an average rate of 5.7%. The problem is that since 2000 Los Angeles' employee costs have risen 7.5% a year, a 53% increase."
Ron Kaye, Editor, Daily News

The latest and most eggregious of the lies comes from a commercial featuring LAPD Chief Bill Bratton. The pro-Prop S TV spot says that the measure closes "a corporate tax loophole." Absolutely no mention of the fact that the measure IMPOSES A TAX ON LANDLINES, CELLPHONES and INTERNET SERVICE. No mention either that the tax will be on EVERY PHONE LINE YOU HAVE. Most people have a landline, a cell phone and maybe a DSL line. That's three lines at 9% a pop.

As the Daily News reported Sunday, "the measure would allow the city to tax voice mail service, pagers, text or instant messages sent by cell phone or PDA."

The pro-Prop S website - PropSFacts.com - is almost as bad. They at least mention the phone task but they frame Proposition S as "closing a loophole so that corporations and others that are not currently paying the tax pay their fair share."

Those "others" are you.

But you and others like you can fight back. We don't have the big bucks from the developers, public employee unions, etc. but we have the power of the people and the internet. Here's one way to get the word out to your friends.

The No On S Anti Shady Phone Tax Cut and Paste Campaign Message

If you're a regular reader of this blog you know how shady Proposition S is. You know how its going to tax cell phones, landlines and internet service. You know how politicians are lying to the people to get this measure passed. Therefore as a public service, we're providing the below for you to get the word out to as many of your friends who live in the City of LA.

Email Message:

Dear Friend,

In the election Tuesday, February 5th, the City of Los Angeles will ask you to vote on Proposition S which will add at least a 9% increase to your telephone and internet services. Unfortunately, they Mayor and the politicians are selling this tax as a "tax reduction" and using scare tactics that the City will run out of funds for police and fire if this measure is not passed.

Do not be fooled. A court ruled this tax illegal (because the City didn't ask you first) and City revenues are up more than ever. The City needs the money to give to downtown developers of condos and sports arenas and to give 27% annual increases to City employees. When was the last time you got a 27% tax increase?

Be sure to vote no on Propotision S.

Text Message:

Your cell phone bill could go up. Be sure to vote NO on LA's Proposition S on Feb 5.

"The Hustle" No on Measure S Commercial

Walter Moore No On Measure S Commercial

LA Chamber Wimps Out on Measure S

Proving itself yet again to be less of a business advocacy organziation and more of a "we like playing with the big boys and getting free drinks/eats club," the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce has broken ranks with other business minded organizations who are opposing Mayor Villaraigosa's fradulent phone tax measure on the February 5th ballot.

The Chamber - which wants so bad to hobnod with the Mayor, other elected officials and the developers and unions who feed them - probably knew it also could no longer remain to be seen as a legitimate protector of it's members' interests if it were to go all the way with the Mayor on this patently deceptive measure. Therefore, they have declared themselves:

NEUTRAL on Measure S
Measure S is the city of Los Angeles’ proposed 9 percent communications user tax which will apply to landline and cell phones as well as Voice over Internet Protocol communications. The city currently has a 10 percent communications user tax on telephone services, which generates $270 million per year and has been challenged in court because it was enacted administratively rather than through a vote of the people.

City Hall declared a “state of fiscal emergency” to lower the voter approval threshold
from two-thirds to 55 percent. The tax rate was reduced from 10 percent to 9
percent but the new tax would apply to a broader range of communications than
the current tax.

City Hall is correct to be concerned about the potential loss of $270 million. And taxpayers are correct to be concerned about the lack of public discussion about the current state of fiscal affairs and options moving forward.

The Chamber would also be correct if they were concerned about the tremendous waste of public funds and that - as noted by Daily News Editor Ron Kaye - "Every year, LA's general fund revenues grow at an average rate of 5.7%. The problem is that since 2000 Los Angeles' employee costs have risen 7.5% a year, a 53% increase."

Therefore there is no need to be concerned about taxpayers keeping an extra $270 million in their pocket, that is unless you're an elected official who needs to keep feeding the beast.