You Said It: City's Cell Ordinance Ignores Reality (But Not Our Tax Money)

[This comment was in response to our two-part series on AT&T cell coverage in Albany.] 

Funny thing, I was just looking over my cell phone bill, and I see that the City of Albany charges a 6.5% percent UUT (utility user tax) on cell phone bills. According to the City Council staff report dated May 17, 2010:

"As an increasing number of telephone users gravitate away from land lines towards wireless communications, it becomes increasingly important to have an ordinance that can accommodate the changing technology in order toretain the City’s revenue base."

So the city acknowledges the shift toward cell phones in order to tax them, yet the city's cell tower ordinance ignoresthis reality and prevents many AT&T and other cell phone users from getting the services that the city insists on taxing. Oh boy, this is rich.