Charlotte City Income Tax?

[atlrvr]

We did pass the 1% local option.....monsoon was using a mocking tone

[dubone]

as far as the 1 percent local sales tax, it was actually a quirky situation where the state raised their taxes. the state had a deficit, so they kept the money from the original sales tax that was supposed to be handed over to the localities. Then they let the locals make up the lost revenue by allowing the pass a higher sales tax. in charlotte/meck, the lost revenue had a large impact on revenue streams, so of course they passed the higher tax. But it was roughly zero-sum for the localities, but a net revenue gain for the state... so it really a state tax increase.

As far as sales tax vs. property taxes, i think property taxes are much more fair than sales tax. for one thing, they are progressive, because richer people have homes and property that is more valuable, so they pay more. sales taxes are often regressive, because a larger percentage of poor people's spending is for sales-taxable items than wealthier people. Also sales taxes that create differences in easy-to-drive distances (like charlotte's proximity to lower SC sales tax and lower taxes in other counties), leads to people thinking they are saving money by driving outside the county, but that inevitably leads to them paying for other people's gov't infrastructure and not their own.... so in the long run, they end up double paying as their local gov't shifts the tax burden around to get the revenue (as is happening now).

[monsoon]

We did pass the 1% local option.....monsoon was using a mocking tone 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well no I wasn't being mocking at all. If the state allows for a tax, Mecklenburg and Charlotte has always immediately imposed it on the residents. This particular tax, BTW has been around since I moved here in the 1970s.

[dubone]

so isn't the tax from a few years ago?

If it is old, have almost all urban counties adopted the same tax? I thought the only sales tax difference with the other counties i've shopped at in nc was the .5% transit tax.

[atlrvr]

I believe most counties have added it, though I would think some in the east and west probably have held out.

[monsoon]

After doing some research, I have to correct myself.

The NC sales tax is 4.5% though this will return to 4% in July.

Each county is allowed to access an additional 2.5% on non-food items or 2% on food that is to be taken home for preparation.

The city of Charlotte also imposes a 1% tax on prepared food.

Mecklenburg has a special tax 1/2% for transit.