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Cell towers as a source of revenue?
County looks at taxes generated from technology
tower web
Cell towers, such as this one located near Brampton Avenue, are a source of revenue for the county, says Bulloch County Tax Assessor John Scott. - photo by EDDIE LEDBETTER/staff
Cellphone towers throughout Bulloch County bring in about $130,000 in revenue each year, Bulloch County Tax Assessor John Scott said.There are about 60 cellphone towers in the county with a total property value of $15.5 million. But each tower can hold several carriers, which also pay county taxesTowers are personal property, but the tower owner may lease space on the tower for wireless service providers to locate equipment.Officials in Augusta recently began looking into cellphone towers and how to monitor revenue issues, but Bulloch County officials are on top of the game when it comes to monitoring the towers and equipment in the county, Scott said. Augusta officials sought Scott’s advice in setting up a program to keep track of cell towers and equipment.Geographic information systems help keep officials in the know regarding cell towers and their locations, and “visual audits at random” keep track of the equipment attached to those towers by cell companies, he said.Tower owners and wireless carriers must go through a permitting process to locate a tower or attach equipment to it, thus making it easy to track revenue, Scott said.
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