A guy in Nathan Wurtzel's Twitter timeline, @NathanWurtzel, asks an extremely interesting question. What if you buy a pumpkin to carve but you save all the seeds to roast and eat later? A little olive oil, a little sea salt, pop 'em in the oven and you're there. I might have provided some Jersey tax lawyer work for a year or two.
TLM, it would depend on whether or not wildlife feed is taxed.
Many states exempt food for cooking from tax, but impose tax on prepared foods and non-food items. It's all in the UPC code, so the computer figures it out at check-out. Pumpkins grown for, and intended for, consumption would have a non-tax code, and the ones that are just pretty would have a tax code, and good luck arguing about that with the check-out clerk.
Ideally, we'd have general sales taxes on all items except rent (the economic impact of property taxes on renters being what it is), with each authority so levying doing so at a uniform rate (at least in re taxes raised for general revenues).
How do they know what you're going to use a pumpkin for? Do you have to sign a sworn affidavit? Will there be inspections?
ReplyDeleteWho's going to enforce this, ...the pumpkin police?
ReplyDeleteWell, I think you have to visit the DL bureau and get your pumpkin patch.
ReplyDeleteA guy in Nathan Wurtzel's Twitter timeline, @NathanWurtzel, asks an extremely interesting question. What if you buy a pumpkin to carve but you save all the seeds to roast and eat later? A little olive oil, a little sea salt, pop 'em in the oven and you're there. I might have provided some Jersey tax lawyer work for a year or two.
ReplyDeleteWhat I want to know, is, how about if I a buy a pumpkin for decorative purposes, but the squirrels eat the seeds. Do I get a rebate on the tax I paid?
ReplyDeleteTLM, it would depend on whether or not wildlife feed is taxed.
ReplyDeleteMany states exempt food for cooking from tax, but impose tax on prepared foods and non-food items. It's all in the UPC code, so the computer figures it out at check-out. Pumpkins grown for, and intended for, consumption would have a non-tax code, and the ones that are just pretty would have a tax code, and good luck arguing about that with the check-out clerk.
Ideally, we'd have general sales taxes on all items except rent (the economic impact of property taxes on renters being what it is), with each authority so levying doing so at a uniform rate (at least in re taxes raised for general revenues).
ReplyDelete