Does your state have income tax?

Did you finally have a tax dude look at your shit or did you just trust the return you did?

The only thing that isn't taxed in Mississippi is prostitution and the only reason that isn't taxed is because it would affect our legislators too much.

The effect of that is to place a much higher burden on poorer people.

Taxing income is more progressive and redistributionist. That's why it exists in the first place. People would tend not to vote for your idea.

Well you pretty much summed it up didn't you?

Bah - it is an incentive to save and spend less. It would be better for the poor people.

People have to do a certain amount of spending.

And of course, the effect on the economy if people stopped would be disastrous.

I did it myself. I read all the applicable tax codes around the short term disability payments and found out what I needed to know. The rule is that if you get disability payments from a policy that your employer pays the the premiums on, then it is taxable income. I had to pay tax on that money.

That right there is the problem.

Nope, no state income tax. 6% sales tax on everything but gas, food, and clothing.

yep.

This year I'll be paying $49 on Federal and $24 on state.

yes, MO has state tax.

Thankfully, no.

The redistribution of wealth does one thing and one thing only. It is the apathy of the citizens allowing the leaders of their country to control their lives via their pocketbooks.

That is true, but if you had any additional expenses for prescriptions, copays, and even travel to and from the doctor those could be applied as write offs to help compensate for the amount of money you were having to pay.

That's not to bad. One of my clients last year paid about $1,200 with a $46 dollar penalty to the federal government because she didn't have enough money withheld from her paycheck last year.

And, in one of the great ironies of all time, April 15th will simultaneously be changed to May 1st.

Damn you folks have a cheap sales tax. Depending on the county in CA, sales tax ranges from about 7.75% on up to 8.25%.

We do not have sales tax on food. But, we do on clothing. Our gasoline tax from the state is 18.0 cents per gallon which we also pay sales tax on.

Sounds pretty good to me. I'd be stocking up on a lot of stuff on those tax free weeks.

Do stores tend to have a lot of sales on those tax free weeks?

Indiana too.

Another interesting thing about the state is this. With counties having different sales taxes you can purchase most anything in a different for that counties sales tax. Except for cars. Counties got upset because people would go to a county with a lower sales tax. So what they did is for vehicle purchases they will charge you by your home address so that the county doesn't lose the sales tax revenue.

Hmmm...

It's labor, bubba. There's no tax on labor. Of course, you know that.

Our guys do it here. A barber will only charge you for his labor, so no tax. A Lawn Care Company will only charge you for their labor, so no tax. A mechanic has to charge you for the parts by federal law, so there's tax on the parts, but no tax on his labor.

That's nothing. TN's is over 9% in many areas, giving us the highest sales tax on the freakin' planet.

I've observed the oddity of sales taxes in my sphere of influence. In the most successful areas, they're low. In the poorest areas, they're high. Coincidence? I think not.

The State charges a flat 4% on all general goods. The Counties and then the Cities can add upon this. My county does not, but my city does.

The States 4% + The County's 0% + The City's 4% = 8% Sales Tax.

The City of Mobile has a total sales tax rate of 9%, and is the exception that proves the rule. Unemployment is high, city corruption is high (arguably the highest in the state), but business is growing rapidly due to the Port of Mobile's growth explosion over the last five years.

The City of Montgomery (State Capitol) has had a total sales tax rate of 10% for years, is thinking about going up, and is the poorest and most crime ridden "large city" in the state. I'm not kidding when I say that I refuse to go into Downtown Montgomery after dark without a full combat load.

The City of Birmingham is the single largest city in the state. There are 1 million people in it's metro area, in a state of 4.5 million people. They went from a total sales tax rate of 8% to a total sales tax rate of 10% in the 3rd Quarter of 2007. The effect was almost immediate. Every car dealership, high-end retailer, and big box chain has either left the city's limits for the very, very tax friendly suburbs or has plans to leave.

When you're talking about a $60,000 Cadillac purchase, a 1% sales tax difference can make or break a deal. Realtors are also having a hard time selling the very, very posh condos that have recently been built in Downtown Birmingham due to the sales tax increase.

The City of Hunstville is the state's crown jewel, IMHO. A total sales tax rate of 8%. The city is clean, prosperous, and they have negative unemployment figures. In fact, the Mayor's Office, in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce, has set up a commission to find people. If you will send them your resume, they will find you a job fitting your criteria if it exists. They're estimating the creation of 20,000 jobs over the next two years that require a college degree (including not a small number of real rocket scientists), and the creation of an equal number of jobs in the city's service industries to serve those degree holders that come to Huntsville to work and live.

So it a lawn care company puts down fertilizer or weed control, that's labor?

A buddy of mine has run a successful lawn care/pest control service for almost 15 years. He doesn't bill for fertilizer, chemicals, or anything else. Just x number of hours of labor at y number of dollars per hour.

There is no "apathy" toward it. It exists because people voted for it, and they wouldn't vote for someone who wanted to change it. The large majority in favour of the idea on this board, as contrasted with the majority against among the public only serves to illustrate how WF is full of right-wing extremists.

Regarding redistribution, there are other mechanisms in society which distribute wealth upwards, so this one is aimed at redressing the balance.

I know I do not recall ever seeing an option for voting yes, or no on an issue of federal taxes. As for the apathy, yes, there is much apathy on the part of the citizens, because even though they dislike the excessive taxation, they continue to re-elect the same losers who create these taxes.

If you are looking for a bunch of left wing extremists you might want to head on over to the trekbbs and request access to TNZ if you aren't over there already. It is a bastion of left wing nuts. There are about 5 right wing leaning people. They would adore someone like you over there.

Uh huh... keep saying that one to yourself if it makes you feel better about taking money from one group of people and allowing the government to waste iit in other areas.