California Sales Tax Hike

[festivalgirl]

Ouch ... this is not an April Fools joke (well the Fool in Sacramento's got the joke on us). Sales Tax goes up 1% on 4/1/09 .. in effect until 7/1/11 or 7/1/12 depending on the State coffers on those dates. Here's the chart County by County. I some cases, individual Cities have additional increases.

http://www.boe.ca.gov/news/pdf/l212b.pdf

[i wanna be in NOLA]

Yikes! You're approaching Chicago standards and, in this case, that's not a good thing...

[rosetree]

WOW!
I thought 9% in Orleans Parish was a lot...:eek:

[Apostrophe (')]

My g*d (wo)man. Time to move to Humboldt :D

[chrisjoseph]

it's not good, but the California budget has been so out of whack for so long.....

[Orleansnj]

It's particularly problematic for the working poor since it is a regressive tax..... therefore it's more of their income than someone who is well paid.

Cali is in trouble - no doubt- and it's going to take some structural changes that I don't think are easy to come by or things that can be implemented in any way, than over a period of time....

Chrissa - thanks for the post - that was a real eye-opener !!!!

[festivalgirl]

it's not good, but the California budget has been so out of whack for so long.....

but it shouldn't be balanced on the backs of the working folk.

[Orleansnj]

but it shouldn't be balanced on the backs of the working folk.

jinx....lol

[festivalgirl]

My g*d (wo)man. Time to move to Humboldt :D

We have friends down here from Portland .... don't think it hasn't crossed our minds.

In fact, they come to Fest with us. I wouldn't be surprised if you guys know each other!

[Apostrophe (')]

We have friends down here from Portland .... don't think it hasn't crossed our minds.

In fact, they come to Fest with us. I wouldn't be surprised if you guys know each other!

Kewl, say hello to them for me :D

Yeah, the ol' 0% sales tax is pretty handy right about now. It has its down-side though when we hear about the lack of funding for schools, bridges, roads, etc.

[festivalgirl]

jinx....lol

yep .... maybe we could stop issuing bonds!!! i think we even issued a bond to make payments on our bonds .... apparently, math isn't ahnolds strong suit .....

[chrisjoseph]

we've had two terrible governors in a row....we have a right-wing republican minority that can hold the budget hostage because passing a budget requires a 2/3 vote in the legislature....and you are right, this shouldn't be put on the backs of the middle class and lower income folks. The whole thing is awful. Cuts to our public education system while we continue building a record number of prisons. It's just insane.

[festivalgirl]

Kewl, say hello to them for me :D

Yeah, the ol' 0% sales tax is pretty handy right about now. It has its down-side though when we hear about the lack of funding for schools, bridges, roads, etc.

do you have another name?

[festivalgirl]

we've had two terrible governors in a row....we have a right-wing republican minority that can hold the budget hostage because passing a budget requires a 2/3 vote in the legislature....and you are right, this shouldn't be put on the backs of the middle class and lower income folks. The whole thing is awful. Cuts to our public education system while we continue building a record number of prisons. It's just insane.

2/3's to pass the budget but a simple majority to change the constitution ala prop 8. this state has been backwards for a long time.

[Apostrophe (')]

do you have another name?

I do, over the years I've learned that I'm also named Buddy, Chief, Sport, Captain, Pal, Guy, Dude, Bro and Pahtnuh (oh and Tick and Ticky, hi barb!) :p

[rosetree]

maybe it's time for this...pot will bail out CA's economy....
from Time magazine....

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1884956,00.html

[Cleophus]

Prop 13 still doesn't help much. :(

[BigDag]

We pay 9.5% here in Mobile. And it's on everything, including groceries, school supplies, prescriptions etc. And I bet we don't get the services in return that you get in California.

[festivalgirl]

We pay 9.5% here in Mobile. And it's on everything, including groceries, school supplies, prescriptions etc. And I bet we don't get the services in return that you get in California.

What services are you referring to?

[stlbarb]

It's particularly problematic for the working poor since it is a regressive tax..... therefore it's more of their income than someone who is well paid.

Cali is in trouble - no doubt- and it's going to take some structural changes that I don't think are easy to come by or things that can be implemented in any way, than over a period of time....

Chrissa - thanks for the post - that was a real eye-opener !!!!

its been a few decades since i was on the left coast, but as i recall there is no sales tax on food in California. in missouri they tax everything.

[festivalgirl]

its been a few decades since i was on the left coast, but as i recall there is no sales tax on food in California. in missouri they tax everything.

lots o rules on food here ....

What is Taxable?

Retail sales of tangible items in California are generally subject to sales tax.

Examples include furniture, giftware, toys, antiques and clothing. Some labor service and associated costs are subject to sales tax if they are involved in the creation or manufacturing of new personal property.

Some items are exempt from sales and use tax, including:

* Sales of certain food products for human consumption (many groceries)
* Sales to the U.S. Government
* Sales of prescription medicine and certain medical devices
* Sales of items paid for with food stamps

Some sales are also nontaxable because the seller and/or purchaser meet certain criteria. A complete list is available in Sales and Use Tax: Exemptions and Exclusions (Publication 61). The Board of Equalization also has a series of questions and answers about the application of sales tax.

SALES AND USE TAX
EXEMPTIONS AND EXCLUSIONS
(BY CATEGORY)
I
. N NECESSITIES OF LIFE — Provisions that exempt property necessary to the sustenance of life.
A. Food
• FOOD PRODUCTS — Sales of food for human consumption are generally exempt from tax unless sold in a heated condition (except hot bakery items or hot beverages, such as coffee, sold for a separate price), served as meals, consumed at or on the seller’s facilities, ordinarily sold for consumption on or near the seller’s parking facility, or sold for consumption where there is an admission charge.

• CANDY, CONFECTIONERY, SNACK FOODS, AND BOTTLED WATER — The exemption for sales of food products includes candy and confectionery, snack foods and bottled water.

• FOOD PRODUCTS SOLD THROUGH VENDING MACHINES — The vending machine operator is the consumer of 1) food products which sell at retail for fifteen cents or less and 2) food products which are sold through a bulk vending machine for twenty-five cents or less. For sales of cold food products, hot coffee, hot tea and hot chocolate through other vending machines at a price greater than fifteen cents, 67% of the receipts from such sales are also exempt from tax.

[janey815]

the sales tax hike is annoying !!

[bobatude]

this is just a begining, pay close attention, taxation and new charges are going to come across the country

[Delta]

its been many years since i was in CA, but i remember that groceries and restaurants did not charge sales tax.

And here in MS not only do we pay the regular sales tax in restaurants, but we also have an additional 'restaurant' tax on top of that which is tied to the tourism bureau in some way. And an additional 1% for food from a vending machine.

Our quick way to figure a 20% tip is by doubling the tax on the ticket.