Gizmodo 
Jan 17, 2006 7:00 PM
1,118
In 1898, good ol' Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders needed a little help in the Spanish American War. So they added a luxury tax on telephone usage. Over 100 years later this luxury tax is still being assessed on phone bills, including cellphone bills. The tax, a 3% "federal excise tax," has been helping us win the Spanish-American War ever since. But now many federal courts and cell phone companies are being unpatriotic and repelling this tax. Sorry, Teddy, your war effort will have to find funding somewhere else.
3 Percent Fee on Cell Phones Started 107 Years Ago [Via Textually]
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