Taxes

[sweeps]

Has anyone looked at their phone bill lately? My landline plan is a flat $35. Fine. But my final bill after federal, state and local taxes is $50. That is $15 in taxes! Essentially a 42% sales tax rate. Ridiculous.

[disneysteve]

I agree. That's true with many services. Hotels are notorious for that. Whenever I make a reservation, I ask what the TOTAL charge will be, not just the advertised rate. They may say it is $99/night, but after all the taxes and fees, it is often more like $125.

[sweeps]

People always talk about federal income taxes. But property taxes, state income taxes, sales taxes, utility and telecommunication taxes... these are taxes that really hurt lower-income people.

[feh]

I took a really good look at my utility bill for the first time a few months ago and was alarmed by the "extra" fees. Not only the taxes, but the surcharge for maintenance (money that goes toward maintaining the infrastructure to get the gas and electrical services to your house).

I wonder if those fees are regulated...are they merely charging what it really costs, or is that a big money maker for them?

[disneysteve]

I love the "delivery" fee on the electric and gas bill. It isn't like I could go pick it up instead.

[KB24]

cell phone bills are just as bad... if not worse!

[jIM_Ohio]

If you have high sales taxes, you can choose to claim the sales taxes as taxes paid on income tax returns (instead of state taxes).

One advantage of this is if you get a state refund, it is not taxable if you used the sales tax method the following year.

[kork13]

Originally Posted by jIM_Ohio

If you have high sales taxes, you can choose to claim the sales taxes as taxes paid on income tax returns (instead of state taxes).

One advantage of this is if you get a state refund, it is not taxable if you used the sales tax method the following year.

how does this work? I live in FL which has a moderate sales tax, but pay taxes through OR, which doesn't have sales taxes. I have seen a block for this before, but don't even know what to put in there... are you supposed to just keep track of what you pay in sales taxes?

[jIM_Ohio]

You have two choices of methods-

there is an IRS table you could look up (and use that number) or keep all your receipts.

[prosper]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

I love the "delivery" fee on the electric and gas bill. It isn't like I could go pick it up instead.

[KatieNK]

Ugh, I hate that you can't just pick a cell or landline plan and have your price be that exact price every month. I would be happier if tax was hidden in the final price and I didn't know about it!

I am lucky to live in Delaware though and not have to pay sales tax!

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Jim, I should look into that. Saving receipts past any possible audit time could be troublesome, though. I notice that some of them fade terribly within months. I'd hate to have to scan everything, even in batches.