Why don't States/cities WAIVE sales taxes and fees for Total Losses on Autos? (Spring: leasing, insurance)

[Hopeful for Life]

Blowhard Repub politicians are always jockeying to cut taxes when they run for office. Why won't the Repubs in charge waive sales taxes on total loss purchases? I know that when I bought my car (now a total loss) that I paid an ungodly amount of taxes. The insurance co just called me with a settlement amount, but it does not include ANY of the taxes and fees that I had to pay when I bought the car the first time around. Shouldn't they waive them the second time around?
FEMA website looks like a "welfare" program. They are asking for my household income!! Wth?? On paper, I make between $150-200k, but after taxes not really. Is FEMA going to refuse to help me because I'm too "rich"- LOL (not really)

[Milton Miteybad]

Because, presumably, the car wasn't a total loss when you bought it, which is when you paid the motor vehicle transfer tax.

Of course, if the car was a total loss when you bought it, then the MVTT would have reflected that.

Nevertheless...saavy consumers will avoid buying such vehicles in the first place.

[SpringBrancher]

Yes, FEMA is for poor people primarily and those who get slammed insanely hard by a disaster or who don't buy flood insurance. Primarily its for people who can't help themselves due to money or circumstance. On e you can help yourself, you are expected to. You can clearly afford to buy a replacement vehicle. Stop whining.

[Hopeful for Life]

Originally Posted by SpringBrancher

Yes, FEMA is for poor people primarily and those who get slammed insanely hard by a disaster or who don't buy flood insurance. Primarily its for people who can't help themselves due to money or circumstance. On e you can help yourself, you are expected to. You can clearly afford to buy a replacement vehicle. Stop whining.

Wow. So smug. I actually WORK for my $ without help from anyone. It seems to me that goats should at least step up and prevent someone from paying auto taxes/fees twice. I only had my auto for 1 year! It seems unfair to tax me TWICE when I'm replacing an auto due to flood damage beyond my control. Govt is there for EVERYONE and EVERYTHING ELSE. WHY not that?

[Dopo]

Same reason republicans claim to be for "smaller government and more freedom for business"
But then have a law in Texas saying that Tesla can't sale cars from their showroom, it can only sell them through a dealership

[Mandres]

OP is sort of all over the place raising different issues with state taxes, insurance reimbursement procedures, and FEMA disaster assistance. But there is a nugget of a good idea there - sales tax relief for new vehicle purchases to replace Hurricane damaged cars/trucks. I could get behind that, provided the details are sorted out to limit abuse and that the State doesn't lose out on revenue it needs.

[kickingprop]

Originally Posted by Dopo

Same reason republicans claim to be for "smaller government and more freedom for business"
But then have a law in Texas saying that Tesla can't sale cars from their showroom, it can only sell them through a dealership

The Tesla thing has always baffled me with this state. It just goes to show the lobbying power of your biggest donors outweighs the ethos of the party...

[TexasTony]

Same with leasing. Unfortunately TX is one of those states which make you pay tax on the sale price of the vehicle and not the depreciated amount based on the lease term. Not sure if you decide to buy vehicle at end of lease term so you have to pay tax again?

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by kickingprop

The Tesla thing has always baffled me with this state. It just goes to show the lobbying power of your biggest donors outweighs the ethos of the party...

Conservatives hypocracy at its best
And I bet everybody is going to defend them saying "Tesla sucks anyway"

[mikeyyc]

So my question is why didn't you deduct the sales tax from your income in the year that you made the purchase? Or did you, and you just want to double dip now?