Cost assessment charge on my U Verse bill

This fee is to recover AT&T property taxes.  It's not a regulatory fee or tax.  The notice was on the prior month's Uverse bill.  I just checked this out too.  Stinks

Just found out this was a property tax recup that you are making your customers pay for. I pay my own property tax, don't want to pay for yours too. We are being feed and taxed to death already. If it is an operating cost just raise your rates! Be honest, how are we to trust you or your intentions when you act this sneaky!

AT&T rep. could not tell what it was for; blamed it on the government.    My cost assessment charge just more than doubled.   If this is for property tax then why don't i get a credit for this payment on my yearly property tax I pay to the County Tax assessors?   {edited for word filter evasion}

After reading some of the comments here, I'm doubly at a loss to understand this cost.

I have an internet only connection for my business and I've had a small charge for the last several months. This month, January, the cost about tripled.

I also have an internet connection plus DirecTV at home. My bill at home doesn't show this line item cost at all.

Go Figure....

Cost Assessment Charge
For landline home phone subscribers only: The Cost Assessment Charge is a per-line, per-month fee that is not a tax or charge that the government requires AT&T to collect from its customers. It is a fee to recover AT&T costs associated with supporting the administration of government programs and requirements.

https://www.att.com/esupport/article.html#!/u-verse-tv/KM1009532?gsi=oyTQjimk

Well, I only have 3 business land lines and my description states:

"AT&T charges you this monthly per line amount to recover its ongoing costs incurred for property taxes and supporting the administration of local number portability, a government program that enables customers to retain their telephone number when changing service providers. This fee is not a tax or charge that the government requires AT&T to collect from its customers."

Why is my wording different than everyone else's? My $7.83/mn fee seems a bit high. That's almost $100/yr.