California Text-Tax Plan Dropped

California regulators have withdrawn a controversial plan to tax text messages.

The California Public Utilities Commission said a new FCC ruling prevented the state from slapping a tax on text plans — money from which California wanted to use to subsidize phone service for disadvantaged communities.

Regulators were scheduled to vote Jan. 10.

The Federal Communications Commission threw a monkey wrench into the tax plan by issuing a rule last week that determined text messages constitute an "information service" — not a "telecommunications service."

Trade groups and wireless carriers were furious about the plan, arguing it essentially taxed conversations and would have hurt wireless carriers and let messaging apps like WhatsApp off the hook, The Hill reported.

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