You're Never Too Young To Be Dunned By The Tax Man
Idaho State Tax Commission reportedly investigated 12-year-old boy for not paying sales tax on his fruit stand. From the Idaho Reporter:
According to reports from the Associated Press and the Idaho State Journal, located in Pocatello, the son of Jason Weeks wanted to purchase a motorcycle, so Weeks encouraged his son to earn money to pay for it.According to the Idaho State Journal, that's when Weeks' son began selling raspberries from a stand on Yellowstone Avenue in Pocatello, near a Red Wing shoe store location. The boy's entrepreneurial ambition eventually led to a confrontation from an official with the Idaho State Tax Commission demanding 6 percent of the sales revenues. Idaho's current sales tax rate is 6 percent.
"We should be encouraging young people to become productive," Thayn said in his letter to the commission. While noting his suspicion that there must be "something missing" from the story that would justify employees of the commission spending time investigating the child, Thayn added that "what it tells me, is that there are too many employees at the tax commission. I would certainly like to know some solution to this situation so that it does not happen again."
Liz Rodosovich, spokesperson for the commission, defended the commission's action as merely enforcing state law. "The Tax Commission is charged with enforcing Idaho law, which states that retail sales are taxable," she told IdahoReporter.com when contacted. "The law doesn't discriminate between sellers."
Rodosovich declined to offer specific details about the incident involving the boy from Pocatello, except to note that the state government employee involved in the incident works for the tax commission's collections division, and is not an official tax auditor. "To put things in perspective, there are currently about 55,000 seller's permit holders in Idaho and another 9,000 temporary seller's permits are issued annually," she said. "These sellers collect tax from the buyer separately from the sales price, and then pass the tax on to the state."
via @reasonpolicy
call me crazy, Sandy... but I'll bet, as a minor, he can't even get the temp tax permit.
I wonder if all those local kids mowing lawns have a permit either...
"son, we think you have plenty of moxie to be out here selling, but you better get in line, 'cuz everyone has to pay the man in this life..."
SwissArmyD at September 6, 2013 3:12 PM
Thanks for helping to make this public, Amy.
Right, Swiss - Once they figure out he's a minor, and not old enough to pay the tax, they'll decide he wasn't old enough to do business in the first place and confiscate ALL his profits.
This story reinforces my decision not to have children. This kid is the kind I'd want to have, and he's fucked.
Pirate Jo at September 6, 2013 4:40 PM
What about yard and garage sales?
Maybe he should send the state the results from his spoiled raspberries. But I would rather send them the results from used raspberries.
Jim P. at September 6, 2013 8:08 PM
I wonder how cost effective it is to hire a goon to extort 6% of a kiddies piggy bank.
Dave at September 6, 2013 8:20 PM
"I wonder how cost effective it is to hire a goon to extort 6% of a kiddies piggy bank."
Not every fool works as a TSA groper. Yet, I bet some commenter will claim the Idaho agent's action is legal and Constitutional.
Radwaste at September 6, 2013 8:59 PM
Wow. Just wow. Shouldn't the tax department have a certain criterion for collecting sales tax from people, such as THEY HAVE TO BE OVER EIGHTEEN???
mpetrie98 at September 6, 2013 9:19 PM
Aren't raspberries technically groceries? I thought groceries were nontaxable?
BunnyGirl at September 6, 2013 9:40 PM
Aren't raspberries technically groceries? I thought groceries were nontaxable?
Posted by: BunnyGirl at September 6, 2013 9:40 PM
That is a matter of state law. Some states have eliminated the food tax, and others still have it.
Still others selectively tax food depending on where it is sold, and how processed it is.
Isab at September 6, 2013 9:48 PM
You know, there might be a ludicrous way around this.
Claim a farm subsidy now, kid!
Radwaste at September 7, 2013 6:54 AM
As I understand it the kid is running a farm stand. If farm stands have to collect sales tax there, so should he. It sounds like a real business designed to make real money - not a lemonade stand where it is more about learning and fun and not making any real money - maybe 1 or 2 dollars for candy.
When I was 12 (in the 80s) I had to file income tax forms based on my lawn mowing - I didn't actually have to pay and lawn mowing did not have a sales tax. My brother, a couple of years ahead of me, did have to pay a bit of tax and actually had to register as a business.
The Former Banker at September 7, 2013 7:43 AM
to be clear, the reason I didn't have to pay income tax was because I didn't make enough money to -- not because of my age. I did make enough that I was required to file. My brother did make enough money to have to pay a tiny bit of income tax one year.
The Former Banker at September 7, 2013 8:54 AM
So, I can see how it's a good thing to apply the law evenly... but I also think that "busting" a kid who probably makes less than a hundred bucks in his "business" is a total waste of taxpayer money. There ARE a few kids who have made substantial money with their entrepreneurial endeavors, and I think they should have to pay any applicable taxes (which I also think should be really low). So, I'm thinking there needs to be some sort of bar - just like with income tax - to say "really, until you make X it's stupid of us to bother." You know, a business that earns $1,000 would pay $60 in sales tax. That *might* be worth the cost of 10 minutes of bureaucratic paper-pushing.
Shannon M. Howell at September 7, 2013 1:03 PM
So, if I have this right, the kid isn't old enough to vote, but he IS old enough to pay taxes?!?!
wtf at September 8, 2013 3:18 PM
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