Nickled and dimed to death

Before signing up for a media package from AT&T (U-verse), we calculated our previous years' expenditures for telephone + internet + cable television and decided the new offering would be a good financial deal.  When the bill arrived, there were the (expected) installation and other one-time fees, but also...

Wisconsin State Sales Tax

Wisconsin County Sales Tax

Wisconsin Police and Fire Protection Fee

Wisconsin County 911 Service Fee

Wisconsin Local Video Service Franchise Fee

Wisconsin Universal Service Fee

Federal Universal Service Fee

... which added over 10% to the cost of the media package.  We still came out ahead, but by very little.  I'm not blaming AT&T for deceiving me - rather just reminding myself to be more wary in the future to get more details on offerings.