Wisconsin Offers Tax Breaks for Rural Broadband Investments

The newly enacted 2019 Wisconsin Act 128 incentivizes rural broadband investment through targeted tax exemptions. Telephone companies will get an exemption for property used to provide broadband service in rural or underserved areas. Most Wisconsin property taxes are paid to local governments. The telephone company property tax, however, is paid to and controlled by the state. This means that the bill will have no fiscal impact on local governments, according to a press release from WSTA — Wisconsin’s Broadband Association.