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Broadcasters press Finance Committee for clarification after Act 145 inventory letters sweep in one‑way radio and TV
Summary
Local broadcasters told the Senate Finance Committee that the Department of Taxes’ inventory letters tied to Act 145 have wrongfully swept one‑way over‑the‑air radio and television into a communications‑property inventory; the department and PVR said they are still gathering first‑year data, and committee staff were asked to draft clarifying language to ensure two‑way telecom property—not routine broadcasters—are treated as intended.
Broadcasters, tax officials and property valuation staff clashed and then largely agreed on one point at the Senate Finance Committee’s April 15 hearing: confusion over how Act 145’s new communications property category should be implemented has prompted inventory notices that alarmed some over‑the‑air radio and television stations.
Wendy Mace, executive director of the Vermont Association of Broadcasters, told the committee that local radio and TV stations received an inventory notice in February and ‘‘panicked’’ because the industry believed Act 145 excluded one‑way broadcast. Mace said the association hired counsel and secured an email concession from the Department of Taxes’ general counsel. Quoting that message, she said the department’s counsel wrote, "If a tower has only radio or television, one way communication to not communications property." Mace asked the committee to add a clear definition of a "communication service provider" to Section 6 of the miscellaneous tax bill (H.933) so broadcasters…
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