Communications
Payment of Telephone Emergency Service Fees and Surcharges

State law prohibits the following fees and surcharges from being imposed on or collected from state governmental entities.

Note: The Public Utility Commission of Texas website has a comprehensive list of telecommunications fees, taxes and surcharges, and applicable exemptions for governmental entities.

A state agency may not pay for a:

• 911 emergency service fee imposed on:
  • Local exchange access lines
  • Wireless telecommunications connections
• 911 equalization surcharge imposed on intrastate long distance services
• Prepaid 911 Wireless Emergency Service Fee
• Local district-imposed 911 emergency service fee regarding the:
  • 911 Emergency Number Act — this applies only to an emergency communication district created before Jan. 1, 1988, located in a county with a population of more than 3.3 million, and in certain areas adjacent to that county.
  • Emergency Communication District Act — this applies only to an emergency communication district created before Jan. 1, 1988, located in a county with a population of more than 860,000.
  • Emergency Telephone Number Act — this applies only to an emergency communication district created before Jan. 1, 1988, located in a county with a population of more than 20,000, or in a group of two or more contiguous counties, each with a population of 20,000 or more.
• County-imposed service fee in certain unincorporated areas — this applies to a county with a population of more than 1.5 million, in which an emergency communication district has not been created under the 911 Emergency Number Act.
• Poison control surcharge — this surcharge is often misapplied because it is merely a portion of the 911 equalization surcharge.
• Fee charged by a home-rule municipality
• Texas Universal Service Fund