A. Upon any telephone business there shall be levied a tax equal to 6.000% of the total gross operating revenues, including revenues from intrastate tolls, derived from the operation of such business within the city of Vancouver. "Gross operating revenues" for this purpose shall not include charges which are passed on to the subscribers by a telephone company pursuant to tariffs required by regulatory order to compensate for the cost to the company of the tax imposed by the ordinance codified in this chapter.

B. "Telephone business" means the business of providing access to a local telephone network, local telephone services, or providing telephonic, video, data, or similar communication or transmission for hire, via a local telephone network, toll line or channel, or similar communication or transmission system. It includes cooperative or farmer line telephone companies or associations operating an exchange. "Telephone business" does not include the providing of competitive telephone service, nor the providing of cable television service. "Competitive telephone service" means the providing by any person of telephone equipment, apparatus or service, other than toll service, which is of a type which can be provided by persons that are not subject to regulation as telephone companies under RCW Title 80 and for which a separate charge is made. Transmission of communication through cellular telephones is classified as "telephone business" rather than as "competitive telephone business." (Ord. M-3083 §1, 1993: Ord. M-3032 §1, 1992: Ord. M-2995 §1, 1992: Ord. M-2969 §1, 1991: Ord. M-2904 §1, 1990: Ord. M-2835 §1, 1989: Ord. M-2787 §2, 1988: Ord. M-2724 §1, 1987: Ord. M-2644 §§1, 2, 1986: Ord. M-2574 §1, 1985: Ord. M-2506 §2, 1984: Ord. M-2426 §1, 1983: Ord. M-2343 §1, 1982: Ord. M-2258 §2, 1981: Ord. M-2059 §1, 1980: Ord. M-1556 §1, 1974: Ord. M-1038 §3, 1968)