Thursday, January 23, 2014

WHO LOOKS A GIFT HORSE IN THE MOUTH?

"Another day, another dollar" as the old saying goes. I just didn't think it really applied to government so much as I do today.

Alabama has a wonderful tax called a privilege tax. That's right, a "Privilege Tax". What this means is if you decide to go into business in the state you start out, as you do in every state I have lived in, by paying an entrance fee, they call this a business license to be registered in the state. This is reasonable and acceptable.

Normally, if you do no business, you don't pay a tax on the business because no money came in to pay a tax on. But in Alabama, you are admired, loved and thought of as on of the boys, therefore to live in such a wonderful place, you have the additional luxury of paying the state for the privilege of trying to do business in it.

Sometimes situations  are strange, sometimes hysterical, sometimes political, but rarely really out there such as having the privilege to do business in a state that is asking for new business all of the time and wondering why it doesn't come.

What a privilege it is to live here, pay income tax here, plus pay house taxes based on your income, and then if you want to spice up the cake, you can start a no-business business, run it for two and a half months, make no money and cheerfully send the state a gift for doing no business and enjoying the right to say you have done no business in the state.

Now that is not all. And you thought you were done giggling. Ha! Caught you!

Within two or three months after starting your "no-business" you receive a tax bill for $100.00.
This is your privilege tax. Now, let's assume you have closed your business, so you tell  your local government folks about it and they say something like, don't worry about it. So--o-o-o-o-- you don't worry about it. Then at the end of the year you receive a friendly letter from your local state revenue department that says, guess what? You didn't pay for having the privilege of having a "no-business business so we are going to charge you a 50% penalty plus a late charge of $7.00. Congratulations for having a no-business business in our wonderful, loving and friendly state where the license plate says "Home Sweet Home, Alabama".

Hey, your state may have a similar "tax" on doing no business.  Better check it out because you might get caught up in a scam and pay out a lot of bucks to a company that is not a company that the state does nothing about. After all, why should they, there could be a lot of  privilege taxes being collected AND WHO LOOKS A GIFT HORSE IN THE MOUTH?

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Ault's Paradise: 3800 Pictures

Ault's Paradise: 3800 Pictures If no one is interested in my photographs or my blogs, it may be time for me to quit wasting my time and concentrate on things that are easier for me to do.

Sunday, January 19, 2014

3800 Pictures

If you like photography, and you would like to travel but can't for one reason or another, take a look at http://flicker.com/photos/tjault