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Obama Seeks to Unilaterally Raise Taxes for Program that Has $5 Billion of Unused Funds
Cybercast News Service ^ | August 23, 2013 - 1:49 PM | Katie McAuliffe

Posted on 08/24/2013 11:36:35 PM PDT by Olog-hai

The Obama administration wants to unilaterally raise taxes on phone bills nationwide, bypassing Congress. As White House Spokesman Josh Earnest put it:

“Unfortunately, we haven’t seen a lot of action in Congress, so the President has advocated an administrative, unilateral action to get this done. We’re not going to wait for Congress to act.”
The increased tax would go to a government-run program called E-Rate, which was ostensibly designed to connect low-income schools to high-speed Internet. …

Schools applying for E-Rate subsidies run into a number of barriers that lead to delays in distributing funds and connecting schools. … Because of the cumbersome application process for these subsidies, there is over $5 billion sitting in the E-Rate account collected through American tax dollars and not used.

(Excerpt) Read more at cnsnews.com ...


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events; US: District of Columbia
KEYWORDS: erate; executiveorder; obama; phonebills

1 posted on 08/24/2013 11:36:35 PM PDT by Olog-hai
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To: Olog-hai
"Look! Over there is some money! Let's take it!"
2 posted on 08/24/2013 11:40:13 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum (Who knew that one day professional wrestling would be less fake than professional journalism?)
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To: Olog-hai

Only Congress can raise taxes.


3 posted on 08/24/2013 11:45:49 PM PDT by Tzimisce (The American Revolution began when the British attempted to disarm the Colonists.)
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To: Tzimisce

Not true, as long as Obama has USSC Chief Justice John Roberts sitting on the bench!


4 posted on 08/24/2013 11:47:43 PM PDT by rawhide
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To: Tzimisce

So far Obama has done anything he wants to do.


5 posted on 08/24/2013 11:48:49 PM PDT by VerySadAmerican (When you vote for evil because you can't see evil, you ARE evil.)
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To: Tzimisce

Back when this country had a Constitution


6 posted on 08/24/2013 11:55:03 PM PDT by GeronL
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To: Olog-hai

defund the white house


7 posted on 08/24/2013 11:59:33 PM PDT by sten (fighting tyranny never goes out of style)
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To: Olog-hai

Our gutless/traitorous Congress will do nothing.


8 posted on 08/25/2013 12:41:47 AM PDT by SIDENET
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To: Olog-hai

Sure, just act on your own, violating the Constitution.

Only Congress has the power to lay taxes.


9 posted on 08/25/2013 12:52:09 AM PDT by Vendome (Don't take life so seriously, you won't live through it anyway)
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To: Tzimisce

Only technically true. This tax is really an administrative user fee, not a tax—like Obamacare penalties are really taxes—which means that an administration/administrator has to introduce and implement it.

It’s like the clause that states that revenue bills must originate in the House. The Senate can also introduce legislation to impose or raise taxes (i.e. Obamacare ‘penalties’) as long as they only introduce an invoice, rather than a bill.

If you were a Constitutional Law Professor, like our glorious President, you would understand these distinction; Mr. Roberts and Mr. Holder certain do.


10 posted on 08/25/2013 1:11:38 AM PDT by ApplegateRanch (Love me, love my guns!©)
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To: ApplegateRanch

The king has spoken, congress is obsolete, again.


11 posted on 08/25/2013 1:25:03 AM PDT by Cowgirl
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To: Cowgirl

Uhmmmmm twenty years ago they were allocating money to wire schools for the internet. Since then, all that’s needed is a server which they already have, like an AS400. Then they need to run wireless repeaters every few hundred feet. The costs are maybe 10% of what it used to be. That might explain the $5 billion laying around unused.


12 posted on 08/25/2013 2:09:08 AM PDT by blackdog (There is no such thing as healing, only a balance between destructive and constructive forces.)
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To: Tzimisce

put that govt concept in the history books

obama and mooch have discovered, UNCHALLENGED, how to use agency reg and executive orders to tax

and then there is that infamous USSC Roberts ruling about obamacare fees....err, taxes...err, fees- ah wth, just pay up, the iRS is all over it


13 posted on 08/25/2013 3:44:19 AM PDT by silverleaf (Age takes a toll: Please have exact change)
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To: Tzimisce
Not when they have delegated the authority to the executive bureaucracy.
14 posted on 08/25/2013 3:49:37 AM PDT by EBH (The 'silent majority' is just as responsible for where this country is today as the screaming mob)
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To: blackdog

i remember. you and i seem to be the only ones bringing this up. these “funds” have been collected fron land line phone bills for decades.


15 posted on 08/25/2013 3:51:18 AM PDT by Donnafrflorida (Thru HIM all things are possible.)
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To: Olog-hai

All schools get free internet from the cable companies


16 posted on 08/25/2013 4:30:30 AM PDT by phockthis (http://www.supremelaw.org/fedzone11/index.htm ...)
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To: Cowgirl

Congress is obsolete until control of the Senate passes to American patriots.

THEN, impeachment of law-breakers and stone-wallers (like Holder) will become possible.

Senate CONTROL should be our goal!

Let’s not let ourselves be distracted by the less-important issues being touted by the MSM.


17 posted on 08/25/2013 6:48:17 AM PDT by pfony1
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To: Olog-hai

Bypassing congress and taking unilateral administrative action ... sounds like a dictatorship. His true colors are coming out. ... Fascist POS.


18 posted on 08/25/2013 7:09:47 AM PDT by ThunderSleeps (Stop obarma now! Stop the hussein - insane agenda!)
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To: Olog-hai

So much for Obama helping the FOLKS that he’s always talking about.


19 posted on 08/25/2013 8:24:07 AM PDT by Vaduz
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