Sales Tax in San Diego County

5 Responses to “Sales Tax in San Diego County”

1. 

   Barry said on Friday, July 29, 2005, 10:50

   Right here:

   http://www.boe.ca.gov/cgi-bin/rates040105.cgi?

   The difference on an average new car ($30K, though I’ve never paid that for a vehicle) would be $150.

   I think that the marginal difference between El Cajon and San Diego might not have an enormous impact, but the overall impact of an 8.25% tax on purchases made with income that has already been thoroughly taxed is pretty significant. That’s simply an enormous amount, compared to the rates in other states in our region.

   Our neighbors:
   Arizona — 5.6%
   Nevada — 6.5%
   Oregon — None

   Others:
   Alaska — none
   Colorado — 2.9%
   Hawaii — 4%
   Idaho — 6%
   Texas — 6.25%
   Utah — 4.75%
   Washington — 6.5%

   One impact is hard to measure: for which businesses (think Buck Knives) is this part of a whole package of costs that lead to them relocating? Consider both the cost of doing business, and the standard of living — hence morale — of its employees, given that a company sells the same volume of product at the same price, regardless of its location.

   One impact is easy: Internet and other mail-order sales from other states. At our tax rates, shipping costs are no deterrent to purchasing on-line, because purchasing something locally has 7.75% to 8.25% tacked onto its price. California has what, about 1/8 of the US population. It’s a huge market. And it buys more and more from other states, at the expense of our local businesses, especially those that operate on-line.

   So, in a state where the cost of living is so high, and a region that does not offer the highest salaries, how long can this be sustained? We will see. Maybe we can live off of our climate and our image forever. It might be worth that much money to live and/or operate here, to enough people and even businesses. It’s worked for a long time, with a few notable lapses. Time will tell.

   I’m not buying any property here beyond my residence, though, I’ll say that much.
2. 

   route66 said on Friday, July 29, 2005, 11:54

   Thanks, Barry!

   San Diego is supposedly a retirement mecca primarily due the weather, but you better be a rich retiree. The cost of living here is increasingly prohibitive. It was tragic to lose Buck Knives and it appears that wasn’t enough of a wake up call.

   Political incompetence and corruption is currently the image of San Diego. Sad. More San Diego negatives at http://route66.f2o.org/stjames.html.
3. 

   MAS said on Friday, July 29, 2005, 15:06

   Here is chart of the sales tax revenue collected by all the cities in San Diego. The ranking is at the bottom of the page.
4. 

   Barry said on Friday, July 29, 2005, 15:47

   Yeah, a while back, many people in San Diego were afraid of “Los Angelization.” This is understandable, but frankly, we’re not Los Angeles. The two cities are VERY different in every possible way.

   If people are concerned, perhaps they ought to be more concerned about “Santa Barbarization.”
5. 

   Jim said on Thursday, May 1, 2008, 5:35

   Is Food taxed at the same rate as other items in California / San Diego specifically?