Illinois Candy Tax

Dear Daytonian,

Computers have made many improvements in daily lives, but it's also allowed governments to get very granular when it comes to choosing what products to sock you for an extra tax bite.  For example, candy in Ohio follows the same rule as other foods; no tax unless consumed on premises.  Other states, as you can read at the link below, either tax or don't tax, and some have goofy rules, but the Prairie State takes the cake (pun intended). 

Illinois defines candy as a preparation of sugar, honey, or other natural or artificial sweeteners in combination with chocolate, fruits, nuts or other ingredients or flavorings in the form of bars, drops, or pieces. Candy does not include any preparation that contains flour or requires refrigeration.  So if you purchase a Twix bar in Illinois you pay 1% in sales tax, but if buy a Snickers bar, you get jacked with a tax rate of 6.25%.  But I suppose when you're already a very highly taxed state, you have to find more revenue as stealthily as possible.

https://blog.taxjar.com/sales-tax-state-candy-taxable

State Tax Return Pages

Dear Daytonian,

Don't like filling out state tax returns?  Try doing it in our neighboring Hoosier state.

Back in 2016 I filled out very simple state tax returns for my stepson for both Ohio and Indiana.  Being neighboring Midwest states, how different could they be?  Night and day different.  The Ohio return consisted of four pages, two each for the IT-1040 and the Schedule of Credits, and was straight-forward.  The Indiana return totaled nine pages with two pages each for the IT-40PNR, Schedule A and Schedule H, single pages for Schedule D&E, Schedule CT-40PNR and Schedule F and had me triple-checking everything to make sure I didn't mess it up.

We even got dinged for a second stamp for proper postage.  And a couple aspirins.

https://www.in.gov/dor/6281.htm

U.D. Arena

Dear Daytonian,

You know Dayton is a big basketball city, but did you know that U. D. Arena is the largest venue in the Atlantic 10 conference?  Did you know that Trent Arena at Kettering Fairmont high-school, with its 3,650 seat capacity, is larger than two of those stadiums?  We're big fans with big stadiums.

In case getting tickets at the perpetually sold out U. D. Arena is proving a challenge, the table below can assist you in planning a road trip.  Don't worry, there will be plenty of U. D. fans to keep you company, as the Flyer Faithful travel well.

http://www.atlantic10.com

School and Venue	Capacity	City, State	Distance From U.D.
University of Dayton U. D. Arena	13,435	Dayton, OH
Saint Louis University Chaifetz Arena	10,600	St. Louis, MO	363 miles
George Mason University EagleBank Arena	10,000	Fairfax, VA	479 miles
University of Massachusetts William D. Mullins Memorial Center	9,493	Amherst, MA	779 miles
University of Rhode Island Ryan Center	7,657	Kingston, RI	775 miles
Virginia Commonwealth University E. J. Wade Arena	7,637	Richmond, VA	510 miles
University of Richmond Robins Center	7,201	Richmond, VA	505 miles
St. Bonaventure University Reilly Center	5,480	St. Bonaventure, NY	401 miles
Davidson College John M. Belk Arena	5,295	Davidson, NC	440 miles
George Washington Charles E. Smith Center	5,000	Washington, D.C.	473 miles
Duquesne University A. J. Palumbo Center	4,406	Pittsburgh, PA	258 miles
Saint Joseph's University Michael J. Hagan Arena	4,200	Philadelphia, PA	537 miles
La Salle University Tom Gola Arena	3,400	Philadelphia, PA	540 miles
Fordham University Rose Hill Gymnasium	3,200	Bronx, NY	641 miles

California Text Tax

Dear Daytonian,

Thank goodness we live in a sane state.

There seems to be no end on the creativity of other state governments to try to raise more money so they can pay for their favorite giveaway program.  This usually entails bigger taxes on business or high-income individuals, a tax on arguably bad things like cigarettes, candy, soda pop and "excess" packaging, or a very small fee spread across a very large population like the recent proposal to tax texting in California.  Fortunately this particular tax was prevented by the Federal Communication Commission (FCC), which ruled texting was an "information service" and not a "telecommunication service".  Now can somebody explain why California taxes fruit at a whopping 33 percent when it's sold in a vending machine?  Crazy.

https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/16/tech/california-text-tax-vote-canceled/index.html

Paying For Gas Repairs

Dear Daytonian,

One more thing to know if your planning to leave our friendly confines for another locale is determining who is responsible for residential gas line repairs, as it varies from place to place.  We're fortunate to have a common sense approach, with everything coming from the supplier, up to and including the gas meter, being their responsibility and everything from that point forward, which is either mostly or fully inside our home, belonging to us.  But in other cities repairs for some of the outside, underground pipe must be paid for by the homeowner, and those can be expensive.  You can buy an insurance policy to cover that, but that's just one more hassle to deal with.  The link below shows all the finer details for our Vectren service, but again, it's pretty common sense.

https://www.vectren.com/cms/assets/service_ownership_faq.pdf

Vehicle Property Tax

Dear Daytonian,

Fortunately Ohio is one of 23 states, and the District of Columbia, that does not have a yearly tax on each car you own.  No one likes paying taxes, but this type of tax is not just about the money, it's about saving some each month, taking the time to write and mail a check (or the online equivalent) and dealing with the inevitable government screw-ups.  As detailed at this link below, the top ten states that levy a vehicle tax start at an average of $413 per year and top out, in Rhode Island, at an average of $1,333.  I paid less than that for the first car I bought.

https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/05/29/the-states-with-the-highest-car-tax.aspx

Vehicle Safety Inspections

Dear Daytonian,

Do you remember the days when we either had to take off work or wait in long Saturday lines to get our cars "smog tested" for $19.50?  Fortunately that went by the wayside around here, but it's still going strong in other parts of the country where air quality problems continue.

But did you know that fifteen other states have periodic safety inspections?  In Pennsylvania, your suspension, steering, tires/wheels, brakes, electrical and lighting systems, defrosters, windshield wipers, speedometer, odometer,  horns, fuel system, chassis and mirrors are checked for proper operation every year.  How do drivers in the other thirty-five states get by, without the government holding their hands?  Just fine.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_inspection_in_the_United_States