Archive for March, 2009
California Sales Tax Hike Starts Tomorrow
March 31st, 2009
A Special Notice was sent out by California’s Board of Equalization early this month, alerting taxpayers that the sales and use tax rate in the state of California will increase by 1% on April 1, 2009.
The tax increase is part of voter-approved Proposition 1A, a budget package designed to increase state revenue by $16 billion throughout the next 2 – 3 years. Intended to be a temporary tax, “The 1% tax rate increase will expire on either July 1, 2011, or July 1, 2012, depending upon whether the voters approve the proposed Budget Stabilization constitutional amendment in a statewide election to be held on May 19, 2009”.
All suppliers licensed as Wine Direct Shippers in California are affected by this increase, as payment of sales and use tax is a requirement of the license. The new state tax rate will be raised from 6% to 7%, making the total of all state-wide tax rates, 8.25%. The rate of 8.25% is comprised of three separate taxes, which apply to the entire state: 7.0% “state” tax + 0.25% “county” tax + “combined state and local” tax of 1.0% = 8.25%.
In addition to the 1% state tax increase mentioned previously, there are also some district tax rate updates, which apply to the following cities and counties:
- The following cities in California have updated their local tax rates: Arcata, Arvin, Campbell, El Cajon, El Monte, Eureka, Galt, La Mesa, La Habra, Oxnard, Pico Rivera, Port Hueneme, Scotts Valley and Trinidad
- The following counties in California have updated their local tax rates: Amador, Sonoma and Marin
One Less Dry Town in Connecticut
March 9th, 2009
Back in July of 2005, Connecticut passed legislation affecting direct shipments of wine the entire state. At that time, four towns in Connecticut were dry. As of February 9th, 2009, only three dry towns remain where wine cannot be shipped directly to consumers. The town of Wilton recently held a public hearing in which a board elected to amend Chapter 8, permitting the sale of alcoholic liquor within the city limits. The remaining dry towns are Bridgewater, Eastford and Roxbury, (which translates to the zip codes, 06752, 06242 and 06783, respectively). There is no news on whether or not any changes are expected in the three remaining dry towns.
