Why do states offer taxpayer subsidized packages to companies so they will relocate to their cities? According to the Carolina Journal, it’s to mask their woeful business tax climate. And North Carolina is one of the worst offenders. A month doesn’t go by without Gov. Beverly Perdue throwing herself at a group of executives. I wouldn’t be surprised if she reeked of beer and cheap perfume.How bad is North Carolina? You have to look at the Tax Foundation to see just how chaotic and hostile the Tar Heel state is to businesses. Currently, North Carolina ranks #44 just above: Minnesota, Rhode Island, Vermont, California, New York, and New Jersey.
How can a southern state rank amongst these liberal ****holes? I’ll tell you, decades upon decades of democratic rule. But more importantly, we have a form of double taxation that ranks us amongst the likes of California:
That’s because it allows localities to levy their own sales taxes on top of the statewide 4.75 percent. Local governments charge on average a little more than 2 percent, making the overall burden nearly 7 percent.
That’s because it allows localities to levy their own sales taxes on top of the statewide 4.75 percent. Local governments charge on average a little more than 2 percent, making the overall burden nearly 7 percent.
North Carolina also gets penalized for allowing local jurisdictions to define their own sales-tax base, meaning they get to decide what is and is not taxable.
“This creates two sales tax systems,” Robyn said. “You’ve got a state system with its own rate and its own list of things that are taxable, and you’ve got local tax systems — which can be different all around the state — each with their own rate and list of things that are taxable.”
“That adds a lot of complexity,” he said. “It’s a big compliance issue not only for brick-and-mortar stores, but especially for online stores.”
A state’s sales tax can hurt the business climate because as the rate climbs, customers make fewer purchases or seek out low-tax alternatives, Robyn writes in the report.
The effect of a higher sales tax rate is apparent when a traveler crosses city or state lines to go shopping, he continued. “Typically, a vast expanse of shopping malls spring up along the border in the low-tax jurisdiction.”
And if you pull up to a gas station in South Carolina, you’ll be sure to see lines of cars with “First in Flight” license plates.
And if you pull up to a gas station in South Carolina, you’ll be sure to see lines of cars with “First in Flight” license plates.
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