Council puts off utility tax decision

Ordinance could be set for Nov. ballot The Chula Vista City Council delayed a decision last night on asking voters to broaden a telecommunications tax. One councilman disagreed with the measure, and another thought a last-minute change was improperly noticed to the public. For two weeks officials have been arguing that they need to follow a statewide trend in updating their 38-year-old utility users tax ordinance, which effectively would apply a tax to every phone bill in the South Bay city. The measure would reduce the telecommunications tax rate from 5 percent to 4.75 percent and expand the tax to long-distance calls, private communication services (T1 lines), texting, paging and toll-free numbers. It now applies to in-state calls only. Officials said reducing the rate is meant to prevent them from collecting windfall... [read full story]