Thread: I owe a California Use Tax? WTF?!!!

Originally Posted by Really Not All That Bright

You're ruining an otherwise very intere... oh, wait. Carry on.

Exactly.

Originally Posted by Fear Itself

The State of Massachusetts sued a tire retailer that had stores in NH and MA to collect MA sales tax on MA residents who crossed the border to buy tires in NH. They lost.

Good. I find it appalling that an auditor from one state's taxing authority even has a right to sniff around at any retailer in another state that didn't even step foot in the former state's soil. It warrants a hardy GTFO. The people that bought the tires are liable......even if it's harder to track the consumers, that's exactly who and where they should be going. Lazy ass bastards (MTA)......either sniff out and be punitive with your own residents or be more become more competitive tax-wise with your neighboring states.

We as a nation can choose how much taxes we pay and services we receive just by packing up a u-haul and moving from one state to another in search of bigger and better opportunities and I really don't see much difference here. The same also happens when people immigrate here or leave, regardless of the legality of it. Businesses even do it to maximize their bottom line and their competitiveness. It happens. A long term solution for Massachusetts should be that they really take a deep look at how efficient their government is as well as their services and find ways to be more competitive.....create more bang for the buck so to speak. Shaking down stores beyond their borders is taking a realization that you can't handle your internal issues.

Being one of the smaller states (where a half hour drive each way to save $40 in tax) is a problem that you should have forseen and taken into account from day one if you're any legislator or taxing authority. React accordingly you idiots.

Originally Posted by Really Not All That Bright

Because most of the "golly gee" posts you describe come from Britons, who don't have to deal with state and local taxes. Australians, of course, do, and yet their tax codes are largely mutually comprehensible (to other Australians), so if they feel like explaining How It's Done, they've got the right.

I'm not saying they don't have the right, but they come off as worse-than-Americans when they pretend to not know how it works in other systems or it's above their mental capacities to at least comprehend the whys of the regime.

magellan, do you make more than $100,000 (from mother knob slobbing or whatever, only the IRS cares about the source)? My sources say that that's one of the FTB's "red flags" to threaten you over use tax.

Originally Posted by magellan01

I'm telling you, California is the nuttiest fucking state with all these taxes. I've been thinking of moving, and this just might push me to do it.

here'syourhatwhatsyourhurrywriteifyougetwork

Originally Posted by thelurkinghorror

magellan, do you make more than $100,000 (from mother knob slobbing or whatever, only the IRS cares about the source)? My sources say that that's one of the FTB's "red flags" to threaten you over use tax.

Yes. But I'm curious as to what triggered this right now. When I finally hear back from the number I called I'm going to ask them. I'll pass on the info.

Meh. I found it utterly incomprehensible at first, and I was already familiar with the federal systems of Germany, Australia and India. US states have a degree of autonomy - and perhaps because of it, a degree of fuck-what-everyone-else-is-doing attitude, that political divisions in other countries just don't have.

Originally Posted by magellan01

Yes. But I'm curious as to what triggered this right now. When I finally hear back from the number I called I'm going to ask them. I'll pass on the info.

Have you seen our state's budget? That's what triggered this. Someone realized that they haven't been pushing use tax collection, and that they could make a few extra bucks if they did. It isn't something you did, you just got unlucky. I think all my clients but 3 got hit with these this year.

Originally Posted by kaylasdad99

here'syourhatwhatsyourhurrywriteifyougetwork

Nicely done. (Credit where credit is due.)

But don't fret. I won't be leaving you any time soon.

You know why you were charged the Use Tax?




Gay marriage. You finally found the unforeseen consequence!