Hee.
http://www.cnn.com/2001/TECH/space/09/28/satellite.tax.ap/index.html
Satellites out of L.A. County tax reach
LOS ANGELES (AP) – The Los Angeles County assessor’s attempt to tax at least eight satellites in orbit above the earth has been rejected.
The California Board of Equalization ruled 5-0 Wednesday to prohibit state and local taxes from being assessed on satellites. Assessor Rick Auerbach had sparked the debate by trying to collect property taxes on the satellites, owned by Hughes Electronics Corp. of El Segundo, which is within L.A. County.
The satellites, parked 22,300 miles above the equator, were worth an estimated $100 million each when new.
Auerbach had sought to tax the satellites as movable property – similar to construction equipment or boats.
Virginia Beach, Virginia, had taxed the Fox Network $120,000 a year for satellite transponders used by its Family Channel between 1995 and 1998. A judge last year ordered the city to return the money, saying the property was outside the city’s jurisdiction.
But this is such an amazingly good idea! Those board members are SUCH party poopers. Don’t they see what a valuable source of revenue they’re passing up? Today the satellites–tomorrow the stuff NASA left behind on the Moon.
Dibs on revenues from the Hubble.