When I was a kid, California sales tax was 6 percent. My Mom remembers when it was 4%. It is now 8.75% in Orange County where I live, 9.25% in LA. This state is broke now, had budget problems when the economy was “good” and has a history of financial irresponsibility. I go out of my way to make as many purchases from amazon as I can. I am talking about my vacuum cleaner, car parts, computers, cameras, tools, or anything they will ship for free. The UPS guy knows me well.
California’s financial problems won’t be solved by taking more from me.
As a bonus, my life is better: more stuff, less money spent.
I marked “I live in a state without sales tax” because I’m in Oregon, but when I didn’t live here I never paid sales tax on my tax form. There’s no way for them to check, so fuck em.
They’ll even nail you for a car you bought several years before bringing it to Michigan. And base the tax on its value when you bought it, not now after it’s depreciated. They do only expect difference in tax between what you paid in the other state and Michigan’s tax. I don’t know which year’s tax rate they look at for each state. (My cite is an article I read in the Detroit Free Press a few years ago.)
ETA: I’m one of the Yes, always. respondents, but I’m really answering for my wife. She does the taxes.
I wonder how many people actually do though. It would honestly never occur to me to declare it.
Actually I figure if enough people start shopping in other tax districts for it to make a dent then maybe it will send the message local sales taxes are too high and they could actually make more revenue by lowering them (i.e. 8% of $100,000,000 is $1 million more than 10% of $70,000,000).