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A bit OT, but I've always wondered why NC's Highway use tax is based on the value of a car. Don't all cars use the highways equally regardless of value? You'd think it would be a flat fee...
Same reason I pay 35% on my income instead of 12%. The more you make the more they take.
A bit OT, but I've always wondered why NC's Highway use tax is based on the value of a car. Don't all cars use the highways equally regardless of value? You'd think it would be a flat fee...
THIS! when i moved here 12 years ago & had a practically newer vehicle i was astounded that they charged me that usage tax based on my car's value. i asked the rep, "don't we all just have four tires hitting the road?". no response. it still burns me up.
on the subject of car tax bills - i also got mine yesterday & noted the $25 raleigh fee. it's more than the tax on my piddly vehicle. i don't recall paying that fee before but perhaps i blocked it out?
I was flabbergasted by this article in the N&O today:
OK, I figured - there must be some great need for higher taxes in Orange County, right? Perhaps due to the economy, or some great unmet need. But no:
Now I'm not some conservative Tea Party kind of person (I live in Chapel Hill, after all), but I couldn't help but think - Really?? You want to ask for a tax increase, and then figure out what to spend the money on? If Orange County doesn't have an identified need for additional taxes, I don't believe they should be asking for it.
I don't see the problem. They're putting it to a vote of residents. If folks think it's not a wise idea to give for a non-specified tax increase, it'll get voted down.
That said, the additional revenue could be useful. Schools are being squeezed, and the share of revenue accounted for by property taxes is getting way too high in Orange County. What the county needs is much more non-residential development, but a small sales tax increase would help the revenue balance immediately as well.
Also, a commenter further down comments that "NC likes to suck money from the tax payers." The Tax Foundation stats are imperfect, but they're the best I could find, and NC's state and local tax burden is 20th in the country, far from the highest, but not the lowest. We could reduce it to South Carolina (37th) or Alabama levels (38th), but there's a price to be paid for that.
As for Florida, it's been helped greatly by the massive migration into the state, which means you can get lots of revenue from permitting and other such sources (as well as by charging much higher property tax on transplants). As the migration slows, the tax burden in FL will fall heavier on residents, meaning either a cut in services or an increase in taxes.
THIS! when i moved here 12 years ago & had a practically newer vehicle i was astounded that they charged me that usage tax based on my car's value. i asked the rep, "don't we all just have four tires hitting the road?". no response. it still burns me up.
on the subject of car tax bills - i also got mine yesterday & noted the $25 raleigh fee. it's more than the tax on my piddly vehicle. i don't recall paying that fee before but perhaps i blocked it out?
So you guys have me reaching back to my early days of living here ... Didn't you have to buy a small plate that said "Raleigh" when you lived in the city? Or was that Durham? Maybe I'm making this up, but something here rings a bell for me ...
A bit OT, but I've always wondered why NC's Highway use tax is based on the value of a car. Don't all cars use the highways equally regardless of value? You'd think it would be a flat fee...
Yes, if it were actually a usage tax. It's really just another luxury tax.
I don't see the problem. They're putting it to a vote of residents. If folks think it's not a wise idea to give for a non-specified tax increase, it'll get voted down.
That's true, and it probably will get voted down. Still, I expect better from our elected leaders. I expect them to lead on issues - not just punt them to the voters. If they think more revenue is needed - then justify it. If not, then don't bug the voters about it. Ask for taxes when they are really needed and you're likely to get a slighly better response than if you ask for them at times when you don't need them (crying wolf).
Also, a commenter further down comments that "NC likes to suck money from the tax payers." The Tax Foundation stats are imperfect, but they're the best I could find, and NC's state and local tax burden is 20th in the country, far from the highest, but not the lowest. We could reduce it to South Carolina (37th) or Alabama levels (38th), but there's a price to be paid for that.
As for Florida, it's been helped greatly by the massive migration into the state, which means you can get lots of revenue from permitting and other such sources (as well as by charging much higher property tax on transplants). As the migration slows, the tax burden in FL will fall heavier on residents, meaning either a cut in services or an increase in taxes.
NC hasn't seen a massive migration into the state?
NH (I grew up there) has no income tax and no sales tax and some of the best schools in the country. #46 out of 50 in tax burden. And no massive migration into the state. Now what excuse does NC have?
NH is very very conservative.
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