(04-17-2018 11:07 AM)UofMstateU Wrote:  Also, as some of my friends found out the hard way, some states require sales tax to be calculated on everything on an invoice if ANY item on the invoice was taxable. In TN, programming services would be taxable, but travel expenses charged to the client isnt, UNLESS you include the travel expenses on the same invoice as the programming services, then it IS taxable.

Discovered in an audit that someone here says doesnt really happen a lot.

There's a local municipality here in Alabama where shipping is taxable even though it isn't taxable in any surrounding municipality or on state of Alabama taxes as a whole because it's viewed as a service and services are exempt from state sales taxes here. The only way you would possibly expect shipping to be taxed in this one municipality is if you hired a CPA firm to handle your sales and use taxes (yeah right) or you got audited and found out the hard way and then have to pay penalties on top of it. Now imagine figuring out little quirky nonsense like that for every town in every county in every state.

(04-17-2018 11:51 AM)UofMstateU Wrote:  Try discussing insurance deductibles with him and see how that goes.

I'm sure it's a blast.

(04-17-2018 11:49 AM)imjustafatkid Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 11:46 AM)Redwingtom Wrote:  No, I most certainly can...mainly because you said tax code and not only the tax code that applies to a single person with no deductions and one W-2, but I digress.

It's funny that you think this is a gotcha while you discuss working interests in oil and gas property in a thread about online retail sales like that would ever be relevant to the large majority of business owners who would be affected by having to collect taxes for every individual municipality in the country.

No, not a gotcha, it's just a fact. Your words again...

Quote:I find it unlikely that anyone who has been involved in tax and accounting "for decades" can possibly believe the income tax code is more complex than figuring out the individual sales tax codes that apply to every city in every county in every state in the country. Please tell me you're not a CPA. Some municipalities don't even have online sales tax payment systems. This would be a complete nightmare for online sales.

Without a doubt one of the most ignorant assertions I've ever seen anyone make here in years! And everyone, but you apparently, knows it.

(04-17-2018 11:58 AM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

Quote:I find it unlikely that anyone who has been involved in tax and accounting "for decades" can possibly believe the income tax code is more complex than figuring out the individual sales tax codes that apply to every city in every county in every state in the country. Please tell me you're not a CPA. Some municipalities don't even have online sales tax payment systems. This would be a complete nightmare for online sales.

Without a doubt one of the most ignorant assertions I've ever seen anyone make here in years! And everyone, but you apparently, knows it.

This is an awesome way to bow out of a discussion. I'm going to have great fun reducing you to semantics in threads about taxes.

With respect Tom, you've taken hyperbole and turned it into a distraction from the issue.

I will grant that 'IRS Code' is substantially more difficult than sales tax code, but that is in no small part because as you clearly note, 'IRS Code' despite being REFERRED to as 'income tax' covers vastly more things than 'income' (by any layman's terms)... including 'passive' income. I'd note that despite the complex verbiage used, all the quote you have listed says is that if you can't treat it as a regular loss when it's a loss, and then a passive gain when it's a gain.

So the concept of income is vastly more complex, but the law really isn't any more complex. Sort of like how sales taxes for resellers is different from sales tax from consumers... and sometimes a business is both. If they buy something with their resellers certificate to avoid sales tax, they aren't supposed to then consume it themselves... much like the part you quoted. Nope, I'm not a CPA, but I have run businesses and done their taxes.

There is a big difference between Macy's and Mary's EBAY business. I can see how verifying compliance could be very difficult or relatively costly. MANY businesses operate on just a few hundred per month.

(04-17-2018 01:26 PM)Hambone10 Wrote:  With respect Tom, you've taken hyperbole and turned it into a distraction from the issue.

I will grant that 'IRS Code' is substantially more difficult than sales tax code, but that is in no small part because as you clearly note, 'IRS Code' despite being REFERRED to as 'income tax' covers vastly more things than 'income' (by any layman's terms)... including 'passive' income. I'd note that despite the complex verbiage used, all the quote you have listed says is that if you can't treat it as a regular loss when it's a loss, and then a passive gain when it's a gain.

So the concept of income is vastly more complex, but the law really isn't any more complex. Sort of like how sales taxes for resellers is different from sales tax from consumers... and sometimes a business is both. If they buy something with their resellers certificate to avoid sales tax, they aren't supposed to then consume it themselves... much like the part you quoted. Nope, I'm not a CPA, but I have run businesses and done their taxes.

There is a big difference between Macy's and Mary's EBAY business. I can see how verifying compliance could be very difficult or relatively costly. MANY businesses operate on just a few hundred per month.

Well, I wasn't the one who took this from a should they or shouldn't they collect taxes to the wild claim that being able to calculate and remit the required sales taxes is suddenly a task to complex to achieve, especially when my company (and many others) already have software which does all this quite effectively. And additionally, that this is not an impossible task since many companies are already doing this.

(04-17-2018 02:12 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  Well, I wasn't the one who took this from a should they or shouldn't they collect taxes to the wild claim that being able to calculate and remit the required sales taxes is suddenly a task to complex to achieve, especially when my company (and many others) already have software which does all this quite effectively. And additionally, that this is not an impossible task since many companies are already doing this.

I can't wait to see how you spin it when businesses start shutting down.

(04-17-2018 02:12 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 01:26 PM)Hambone10 Wrote:  With respect Tom, you've taken hyperbole and turned it into a distraction from the issue.

I will grant that 'IRS Code' is substantially more difficult than sales tax code, but that is in no small part because as you clearly note, 'IRS Code' despite being REFERRED to as 'income tax' covers vastly more things than 'income' (by any layman's terms)... including 'passive' income. I'd note that despite the complex verbiage used, all the quote you have listed says is that if you can't treat it as a regular loss when it's a loss, and then a passive gain when it's a gain.

So the concept of income is vastly more complex, but the law really isn't any more complex. Sort of like how sales taxes for resellers is different from sales tax from consumers... and sometimes a business is both. If they buy something with their resellers certificate to avoid sales tax, they aren't supposed to then consume it themselves... much like the part you quoted. Nope, I'm not a CPA, but I have run businesses and done their taxes.

There is a big difference between Macy's and Mary's EBAY business. I can see how verifying compliance could be very difficult or relatively costly. MANY businesses operate on just a few hundred per month.

Well, I wasn't the one who took this from a should they or shouldn't they collect taxes to the wild claim that being able to calculate and remit the required sales taxes is suddenly a task to complex to achieve, especially when my company (and many others) already have software which does all this quite effectively. And additionally, that this is not an impossible task since many companies are already doing this.

Not too complex to achieve, too complex & expensive for the vast number of businesses who will be required to do it for the amount of commerce they handle.

You are basically turning the interstate sales tax code into Dodd-Frank. Only those too big to fail will be able to do it.

Also, it would be EASY for the companies to do it if the STATES all had their sh*t together with a simple dashboard & webservice for integration to pull it off. But like I said, some of the tax structures are so complex that even they have a hard time figuring it out.

(04-17-2018 02:16 PM)imjustafatkid Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:12 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  Well, I wasn't the one who took this from a should they or shouldn't they collect taxes to the wild claim that being able to calculate and remit the required sales taxes is suddenly a task to complex to achieve, especially when my company (and many others) already have software which does all this quite effectively. And additionally, that this is not an impossible task since many companies are already doing this.

I can't wait to see how you spin it when businesses start shutting down.

It's not even a law yet, and should it become law, they may even add an exception for small retailers. Additionally, businesses collect sales taxes all the time on in-state purchases and remit those to their resident state now. It's not as if it's a foreign concept to them. Further, most small "mom and pop" businesses are small because they don't even do a lot of out of state shipping to begin with!

Not to mention that it likely has an uphill climb on a conservative leaning court.

(04-17-2018 02:19 PM)UofMstateU Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:12 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 01:26 PM)Hambone10 Wrote:  With respect Tom, you've taken hyperbole and turned it into a distraction from the issue.

I will grant that 'IRS Code' is substantially more difficult than sales tax code, but that is in no small part because as you clearly note, 'IRS Code' despite being REFERRED to as 'income tax' covers vastly more things than 'income' (by any layman's terms)... including 'passive' income. I'd note that despite the complex verbiage used, all the quote you have listed says is that if you can't treat it as a regular loss when it's a loss, and then a passive gain when it's a gain.

So the concept of income is vastly more complex, but the law really isn't any more complex. Sort of like how sales taxes for resellers is different from sales tax from consumers... and sometimes a business is both. If they buy something with their resellers certificate to avoid sales tax, they aren't supposed to then consume it themselves... much like the part you quoted. Nope, I'm not a CPA, but I have run businesses and done their taxes.

There is a big difference between Macy's and Mary's EBAY business. I can see how verifying compliance could be very difficult or relatively costly. MANY businesses operate on just a few hundred per month.

Well, I wasn't the one who took this from a should they or shouldn't they collect taxes to the wild claim that being able to calculate and remit the required sales taxes is suddenly a task to complex to achieve, especially when my company (and many others) already have software which does all this quite effectively. And additionally, that this is not an impossible task since many companies are already doing this.

Not too complex to achieve, too complex & expensive for the vast number of businesses who will be required to do it for the amount of commerce they handle.

You are basically turning the interstate sales tax code into Dodd-Frank. Only those too big to fail will be able to do it.

Also, it would be EASY for the companies to do it if the STATES all had their sh*t together with a simple dashboard & webservice for integration to pull it off. But like I said, some of the tax structures are so complex that even they have a hard time figuring it out.

You're basically arguing against yourself. One one hand you say they don't have that much commerce that applies, and then on the other hand say it will be too expensive to handle the small amount of it!

And what localities have such complex structures that they don't even know how to figure them out? Specific names please?

(04-17-2018 02:12 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  Well, I wasn't the one who took this from a should they or shouldn't they collect taxes to the wild claim that being able to calculate and remit the required sales taxes is suddenly a task to complex to achieve, especially when my company (and many others) already have software which does all this quite effectively. And additionally, that this is not an impossible task since many companies are already doing this.

I think the idea that this is suddenly a task too complex to achieve and that this is a task too costly for many small internet businesses to engage in are two sides of the same coin.

I don't know what such software costs to have, operate, incorporate, audit and update (because the burden of collecting taxes is on the seller) so let's say it's $50/month. I can see this eliminating 'Joe's internet business' and making Joe (if he chooses to continue in business) to contract through Amazon or Ebay or some other aggregator who would purchase and then license the software for say $2/transaction.

That might be good for Amazon, but not good for Joe's... and Joe is already at a competitive disadvantage to Wal-Mart when it comes to purchasing power.

It's a tough one for me... which is why I suggested a blanket tax

The internet after all is an interstate and thus federal issue, and not an intra-state one

(04-17-2018 02:28 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  And what localities have such complex structures that they don't even know how to figure them out? Specific names please?

It's not that localities have complex structures, it's that every locality has a different structure. At this point I think you're just trolling. No one can be this blind to this clear issue.

(04-17-2018 02:28 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:19 PM)UofMstateU Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:12 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 01:26 PM)Hambone10 Wrote:  With respect Tom, you've taken hyperbole and turned it into a distraction from the issue.

I will grant that 'IRS Code' is substantially more difficult than sales tax code, but that is in no small part because as you clearly note, 'IRS Code' despite being REFERRED to as 'income tax' covers vastly more things than 'income' (by any layman's terms)... including 'passive' income. I'd note that despite the complex verbiage used, all the quote you have listed says is that if you can't treat it as a regular loss when it's a loss, and then a passive gain when it's a gain.

So the concept of income is vastly more complex, but the law really isn't any more complex. Sort of like how sales taxes for resellers is different from sales tax from consumers... and sometimes a business is both. If they buy something with their resellers certificate to avoid sales tax, they aren't supposed to then consume it themselves... much like the part you quoted. Nope, I'm not a CPA, but I have run businesses and done their taxes.

There is a big difference between Macy's and Mary's EBAY business. I can see how verifying compliance could be very difficult or relatively costly. MANY businesses operate on just a few hundred per month.

Well, I wasn't the one who took this from a should they or shouldn't they collect taxes to the wild claim that being able to calculate and remit the required sales taxes is suddenly a task to complex to achieve, especially when my company (and many others) already have software which does all this quite effectively. And additionally, that this is not an impossible task since many companies are already doing this.

Not too complex to achieve, too complex & expensive for the vast number of businesses who will be required to do it for the amount of commerce they handle.

You are basically turning the interstate sales tax code into Dodd-Frank. Only those too big to fail will be able to do it.

Also, it would be EASY for the companies to do it if the STATES all had their sh*t together with a simple dashboard & webservice for integration to pull it off. But like I said, some of the tax structures are so complex that even they have a hard time figuring it out.

You're basically arguing against yourself. One one hand you say they don't have that much commerce that applies, and then on the other hand say it will be too expensive to handle the small amount of it!

And what localities have such complex structures that they don't even know how to figure them out? Specific names please?

Start your education here.

Experts, Democrats and Republicans are all in agreement: Colorado’s sales tax system is a tangled mess.

Business owners find it needlessly complicated, a mind-boggling array of conflicting rules and regulations that shift from city to city.

Consumers, by and large, are blissfully ignorant of its quirks. But the $2 billion a year in sales tax breaks the state offers to a seemingly random collection of special interests translates to less money for things such as roads and schools — and higher taxes on everything else.

Meanwhile, state lawmakers — spurred on by frustrated business groups — have been trying to overhaul the system since at least 1984. Instead, Colorado sales tax laws have only grown more complicated, so much so that there are now more than 700 possible combinations of sales taxes that businesses have to collect.

https://www.denverpost.com/2017/06/05/co...ax-reform/

(04-17-2018 02:29 PM)Hambone10 Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:12 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  Well, I wasn't the one who took this from a should they or shouldn't they collect taxes to the wild claim that being able to calculate and remit the required sales taxes is suddenly a task to complex to achieve, especially when my company (and many others) already have software which does all this quite effectively. And additionally, that this is not an impossible task since many companies are already doing this.

I think the idea that this is suddenly a task too complex to achieve and that this is a task too costly for many small internet businesses to engage in are two sides of the same coin.

I don't know what such software costs to have, operate, incorporate, audit and update (because the burden of collecting taxes is on the seller) so let's say it's $50/month. I can see this eliminating 'Joe's internet business' and making Joe (if he chooses to continue in business) to contract through Amazon or Ebay or some other aggregator who would purchase and then license the software for say $2/transaction.

That might be good for Amazon, but not good for Joe's... and Joe is already at a competitive disadvantage to Wal-Mart when it comes to purchasing power.

It's a tough one for me... which is why I suggested a blanket tax

The internet after all is an interstate and thus federal issue, and not an intra-state one

Don't disagree. I too would prefer a flat tax on out-of-state internet commerce. Additionally, as I mentioned above, I'd put in an exemption for true small mom and pop type businesses, at least making it optional for them. Then the state could still have lines on their returns for taxpayers to pay their taxes on out of state purchases where no tax was collected at the point of sale.

(04-17-2018 03:31 PM)UofMstateU Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:28 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:19 PM)UofMstateU Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:12 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 01:26 PM)Hambone10 Wrote:  With respect Tom, you've taken hyperbole and turned it into a distraction from the issue.

I will grant that 'IRS Code' is substantially more difficult than sales tax code, but that is in no small part because as you clearly note, 'IRS Code' despite being REFERRED to as 'income tax' covers vastly more things than 'income' (by any layman's terms)... including 'passive' income. I'd note that despite the complex verbiage used, all the quote you have listed says is that if you can't treat it as a regular loss when it's a loss, and then a passive gain when it's a gain.

So the concept of income is vastly more complex, but the law really isn't any more complex. Sort of like how sales taxes for resellers is different from sales tax from consumers... and sometimes a business is both. If they buy something with their resellers certificate to avoid sales tax, they aren't supposed to then consume it themselves... much like the part you quoted. Nope, I'm not a CPA, but I have run businesses and done their taxes.

There is a big difference between Macy's and Mary's EBAY business. I can see how verifying compliance could be very difficult or relatively costly. MANY businesses operate on just a few hundred per month.

Well, I wasn't the one who took this from a should they or shouldn't they collect taxes to the wild claim that being able to calculate and remit the required sales taxes is suddenly a task to complex to achieve, especially when my company (and many others) already have software which does all this quite effectively. And additionally, that this is not an impossible task since many companies are already doing this.

Not too complex to achieve, too complex & expensive for the vast number of businesses who will be required to do it for the amount of commerce they handle.

You are basically turning the interstate sales tax code into Dodd-Frank. Only those too big to fail will be able to do it.

Also, it would be EASY for the companies to do it if the STATES all had their sh*t together with a simple dashboard & webservice for integration to pull it off. But like I said, some of the tax structures are so complex that even they have a hard time figuring it out.

You're basically arguing against yourself. One one hand you say they don't have that much commerce that applies, and then on the other hand say it will be too expensive to handle the small amount of it!

And what localities have such complex structures that they don't even know how to figure them out? Specific names please?

Start your education here.

Experts, Democrats and Republicans are all in agreement: Colorado’s sales tax system is a tangled mess.

Business owners find it needlessly complicated, a mind-boggling array of conflicting rules and regulations that shift from city to city.

Consumers, by and large, are blissfully ignorant of its quirks. But the $2 billion a year in sales tax breaks the state offers to a seemingly random collection of special interests translates to less money for things such as roads and schools — and higher taxes on everything else.

Meanwhile, state lawmakers — spurred on by frustrated business groups — have been trying to overhaul the system since at least 1984. Instead, Colorado sales tax laws have only grown more complicated, so much so that there are now more than 700 possible combinations of sales taxes that businesses have to collect.

https://www.denverpost.com/2017/06/05/co...ax-reform/

Quote:Colorado’s one of just six states that doesn’t have a uniform tax base across the state, meaning something that’s taxed in one place might be tax-exempt elsewhere.

And I don't see anything in this article that says the state itself has a hard time figuring out the law...but maybe I missed...and I would agree that it is likely hard. That being said, they seem to be the exception to the rule and by far the worst state. Additionally, they at least recognize it and are trying to find a solution.

(04-17-2018 03:48 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 03:31 PM)UofMstateU Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:28 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:19 PM)UofMstateU Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:12 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  Well, I wasn't the one who took this from a should they or shouldn't they collect taxes to the wild claim that being able to calculate and remit the required sales taxes is suddenly a task to complex to achieve, especially when my company (and many others) already have software which does all this quite effectively. And additionally, that this is not an impossible task since many companies are already doing this.

Not too complex to achieve, too complex & expensive for the vast number of businesses who will be required to do it for the amount of commerce they handle.

You are basically turning the interstate sales tax code into Dodd-Frank. Only those too big to fail will be able to do it.

Also, it would be EASY for the companies to do it if the STATES all had their sh*t together with a simple dashboard & webservice for integration to pull it off. But like I said, some of the tax structures are so complex that even they have a hard time figuring it out.

You're basically arguing against yourself. One one hand you say they don't have that much commerce that applies, and then on the other hand say it will be too expensive to handle the small amount of it!

And what localities have such complex structures that they don't even know how to figure them out? Specific names please?

Start your education here.

Experts, Democrats and Republicans are all in agreement: Colorado’s sales tax system is a tangled mess.

Business owners find it needlessly complicated, a mind-boggling array of conflicting rules and regulations that shift from city to city.

Consumers, by and large, are blissfully ignorant of its quirks. But the $2 billion a year in sales tax breaks the state offers to a seemingly random collection of special interests translates to less money for things such as roads and schools — and higher taxes on everything else.

Meanwhile, state lawmakers — spurred on by frustrated business groups — have been trying to overhaul the system since at least 1984. Instead, Colorado sales tax laws have only grown more complicated, so much so that there are now more than 700 possible combinations of sales taxes that businesses have to collect.

https://www.denverpost.com/2017/06/05/co...ax-reform/

Quote:Colorado’s one of just six states that doesn’t have a uniform tax base across the state, meaning something that’s taxed in one place might be tax-exempt elsewhere.

And I don't see anything in this article that says the state itself has a hard time figuring out the law...but maybe I missed...and I would agree that it is likely hard. That being said, they seem to be the exception to the rule and by far the worst state. Additionally, they at least recognize it and are trying to find a solution.

We havent even gotten to "special taxing districts" yet

In Harris County alone, there are now six separate crime control districts, each levying separate sales and use taxes, as well as countless other special taxing entities. Illustratively, a resident of Bellaire will pay sales taxes to the state, as well to the City of Houston and the Houston Metropolitan Transit Authority. On top of this, they will pay property taxes to the Houston Independent School District, Harris County, the Harris County Flood Control District, the Department of Education, the Houston Community College District, and the City of Houston itself. Taxpayers across the Harris County area are faced with a similarly complex web of taxing entities.

The complexities of confusion can come into play when trying to determine which taxing jurisdiction a shipping location belongs to, as some businesses and buildings split a taxing jurisdiction line.

guys....
taxing by zip code isn't that tough... The problem is the burden of compliance is on the small business... not the consumer. we could easily set up 'shipping zones' that don't have taxes or have very low ones that then forward purchases to recipients. Wouldn't make sense for that tube of toothpaste, but would for something bought from Blue Nile.

The first thing I'd do is find some indian reservation or some unincorprated area of a state with a low sales tax and set up a re-shipping service.

(04-17-2018 10:08 AM)Paul M Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 08:11 AM)imjustafatkid Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 07:41 AM)Paul M Wrote:  

(04-16-2018 09:55 PM)imjustafatkid Wrote:  

(04-16-2018 11:48 AM)Paul M Wrote:  I wonder how everyone who does this without problems are doing it.

No one's doing it.

Then an awful lot of online retailers are stealing from me.

They aren't collecting local taxes. You don't know what you're talking about.

Recent order from Amazon says otherwise. $47.99, tax $4.49.

State rate 4.5%, county 1.3%, LOCAL 4.5%

The discrepancy you see there:

Quote:Rate variation
The (my zip) tax rate may change depending of the type of purchase.

The rate may also vary for the same zip code depending of the city and street address.

I'm in a city but another county.

Heh. My PO box (actually a private one that accepts packages for you) pays for itself now. I live in a major Texas city -- near a county line. The other county is mainly still rural with a much lwoer county sales tax.

Billing address is PO Box in a subdivision less than a mile from the house, but in that other county. A fraction of a per cent times a crapload of Amazon == the cost + more of the PO box.

Lolz. I dont see how anyone would call that an equitable or smart setup.

(04-17-2018 04:57 PM)Hambone10 Wrote:  The problem is the burden of compliance is on the small business... not the consumer.

They already try this here in Alabama. You're supposed to report any online purchases that weren't taxed on your Alabama form 40 and pay use tax on it along with your state income taxes. Everyone just checks the box that they had no online purchases during the year and goes on about their business. No one's got time to look into that, and they don't have the resources to audit such a thing on the individual level anyway.

(04-17-2018 04:37 PM)UofMstateU Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 03:48 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 03:31 PM)UofMstateU Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:28 PM)Redwingtom Wrote:  

(04-17-2018 02:19 PM)UofMstateU Wrote:  Not too complex to achieve, too complex & expensive for the vast number of businesses who will be required to do it for the amount of commerce they handle.

You are basically turning the interstate sales tax code into Dodd-Frank. Only those too big to fail will be able to do it.

Also, it would be EASY for the companies to do it if the STATES all had their sh*t together with a simple dashboard & webservice for integration to pull it off. But like I said, some of the tax structures are so complex that even they have a hard time figuring it out.

You're basically arguing against yourself. One one hand you say they don't have that much commerce that applies, and then on the other hand say it will be too expensive to handle the small amount of it!

And what localities have such complex structures that they don't even know how to figure them out? Specific names please?

Start your education here.

Experts, Democrats and Republicans are all in agreement: Colorado’s sales tax system is a tangled mess.

Business owners find it needlessly complicated, a mind-boggling array of conflicting rules and regulations that shift from city to city.

Consumers, by and large, are blissfully ignorant of its quirks. But the $2 billion a year in sales tax breaks the state offers to a seemingly random collection of special interests translates to less money for things such as roads and schools — and higher taxes on everything else.

Meanwhile, state lawmakers — spurred on by frustrated business groups — have been trying to overhaul the system since at least 1984. Instead, Colorado sales tax laws have only grown more complicated, so much so that there are now more than 700 possible combinations of sales taxes that businesses have to collect.

https://www.denverpost.com/2017/06/05/co...ax-reform/

Quote:Colorado’s one of just six states that doesn’t have a uniform tax base across the state, meaning something that’s taxed in one place might be tax-exempt elsewhere.

And I don't see anything in this article that says the state itself has a hard time figuring out the law...but maybe I missed...and I would agree that it is likely hard. That being said, they seem to be the exception to the rule and by far the worst state. Additionally, they at least recognize it and are trying to find a solution.

We havent even gotten to "special taxing districts" yet

In Harris County alone, there are now six separate crime control districts, each levying separate sales and use taxes, as well as countless other special taxing entities. Illustratively, a resident of Bellaire will pay sales taxes to the state, as well to the City of Houston and the Houston Metropolitan Transit Authority. On top of this, they will pay property taxes to the Houston Independent School District, Harris County, the Harris County Flood Control District, the Department of Education, the Houston Community College District, and the City of Houston itself. Taxpayers across the Harris County area are faced with a similarly complex web of taxing entities.

The complexities of confusion can come into play when trying to determine which taxing jurisdiction a shipping location belongs to, as some businesses and buildings split a taxing jurisdiction line.

Yeah...so, how is this hard? A resident of Bellaire will already know the state sales tax rate, the city of Houston rate, and the MTA rate. These will all be known before the start of the taxing year. Any software provider will also know this rate in plenty of time to program the software. The sum of these rates will be what is charged at purchase. And correct me if I'm wrong, but I would imagine that this rate is paid to one collector, likely the state, which then remits the local portions to those localities.

Property taxes have nothing to do with this.