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2 Anonymous Users
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Home away from home
 
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So here's the story, having gone back to Shoprite to inquire. Turns out any juice that is not '100% juice' - as in added preservatives, sugar, etc. is taxable as of Jan 1, 2007. No idea as to why it was changed last year, but it was.
Posted on: 2008/12/6 6:18
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Just can't stay away
 
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Go to the Dunkin' Donuts in the Exxon at 18th and Jersey. $2.02 for a large coffee. Kills me every time.
Posted on: 2008/12/4 18:44
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Just can't stay away
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That is correct. It's not automatic and it's not simple to take part in this program.
Posted on: 2008/12/4 18:15
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Home away from home
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They are not necessarily cheating anyone. Its an optional program, and they may choose not to participate.
Posted on: 2008/12/4 16:07
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Home away from home
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Notice also the chicken at Shop-Rite: tax free if raw but if hot it's judged by some weird concept as being a "restaurant meal" and thus a taxed "luxury."
But then what about baked bread being considered the same as a bag of flour? Or a potato chip being tax-free just like a bag of potatoes...or potato SALAD? I guess maybe HEAT is the key element.  What galls me is the stores that charge 7% on the taxables when I KNOW they are paying only 3.5% to the state...there are a LOT of them that try this cutesy FRAUDULENT trick but the state taxman is too lazy to do his job. (Yep, soda, like candy, is considered a luxury in almost all states, not a food. But then what about lobster tails at $30 a pound?) No rhyme or reason.
Posted on: 2008/12/4 15:04
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Home away from home
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I prefer when they do it this way. How annoying would it be if a slice of pizza cost $2.14? It would take all the joy out of pizza.
Posted on: 2008/12/4 14:59
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Home away from home
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I suspect it's because soft drinks simply can't be considered food by any stretch of the imagination. You can make the argument that all the other items contain some nutritional value, however little. It's hard to imagine any soft drink containing any nutritional value - not even the vitamin waters that are loaded with calories and are mostly a scam. I guess we're conditioned to think we're not paying sales tax on soft drinks because vending machines don't add on a sales tax, and bodegas and delis typically don't add on sales tax to single cans or bottles you might buy (the owners just take it out of their markup).
Posted on: 2008/12/4 14:02
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Just can't stay away
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Was the yogurt in single-serve packages? That's the only thing I can think of. Wheat Thins and mayo are obviously bulk purchases... who knows? Google doesn't seem to help very much. Maybe you should call somebody at the grocery store.. I've always found management at grocery stores to be unbelievably helpful when it comes to obscure questions about the way things are run. [/nerd]
Posted on: 2008/12/4 9:33
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Home away from home
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Sliced carrot-bread was prepared and processed as well. And was yummy, I might add.
Nice try, but anyone else have any ideas?
Posted on: 2008/12/4 7:49
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Newbie
 
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That's right. Those foods are already prepared and processed. How can you tax the tea and not the other stuff?
Posted on: 2008/12/3 15:44
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Just can't stay away
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Well that make no sense since they didn't charge tax on wheat thins, bannana yogurt or mayo
Posted on: 2008/12/3 14:18
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Re: Sales tax head-scratcher
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Just can't stay away
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From Sales and Use Tax (N.J.S.A.54:32B-1 et seq.): [link]
"Major exemptions include: ... unprepared food and food ingredients purchased for human consumption; ... "
The keyword there is "unprepared". The Arizona iced tea has already been brewed, sugared, bottled, etc. Boxed and bagged or loose tea would not be subject to sales tax.
Posted on: 2008/12/3 7:52
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Sales tax head-scratcher
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Home away from home
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Shopping this evening, I noticed something odd. I was charged 3 cents sales tax on about $33 dollars worth of food at Shoprite. Clearly, only one item was the offending piece, but all I bought were perishables. So there I am, wondering what the hell I purchased that could possibly be taxed?
Who wants to guess which of the following items is taxable: broccoli crowns, sliced mushrooms, porterhouse steak, arizona iced tea, 2% milk, wheat thins, lemon juice, sliced carrot-bread, plum tomatos, banana yogurt, hellman's mayonnaise, florida natural orange juice. Answer at the end of this post. OK, I got nothing else to add. I was taxed on iced tea. WTF? Those who paid attention in history will sarcastically recall that a tax on tea was a catalyst for the revolutionary war. I thought we got rid of tax on this farking stuff!
Posted on: 2008/12/3 7:05
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