Taxed to death

Weren't "user fees" levied by governments known as "taxes" back in the day?
Well, no more of that. The Commonwealth is seeing a "light" at the end of a tunnel thanks to the invention of "user fees".

The Globe's headline writer and reporter Matt Viser are willing accomplices in spreading the myth that user fees are not taxes though, curiously, most of those quoted in the article itself refer to "taxes." Expect that language to change.

Tommy Menino is stoked about the new discovery:

We've been advocating for local options for several years, and if this says cities can have their own local option, it's a good beginning."

"local option" means "tax"