Taxes and Fees Go Up for Wireless Services — But Not So Bad in NJ

While wireless service charges have been decreasing, taxes, fees and surcharges on those services have been steadily rising, according to a comprehensive report from The Tax Foundation.

They determined that taxes, fees and surcharges on wireless increased sharply this year, jumping from a national average of 19.1% to 21.7%

Ulrik Boesen, who crunches the numbers as a senior policy analyst for the foundation, explains most consumers don't even notice.

"Consumers wouldn't notice these taxes unless they sort of make a deep dive into their bill and because the price of one of the services has gone down over the last few years," he said.

He said that consumers may not be seeing the full benefit of the competition in the world wireless market. That competition has been offering more consumers wireless rates that are more reasonable. But there is good news for New Jersey wireless users.

Compared to other states, Boesen says "the taxes are not that high. Jersey is not doing bad. In our ranking, New Jersey is number 38 out of the 50 states at a combined rate of 9% for the state local rates. "

Joe Cutter is the senior news anchor on New Jersey 101.5