What are excise taxes

Quit giving anybody ideas.

Excise taxes have been imposed by federal, state and local governments on everything from guns and ammunition to telephone calls to cars to cigarettes to fishing tackle boxes to parts of arrows.

They may be imposed on purchases, or on possession. Mainers pay annual excise taxes on their vehicles, based on original purchase price and depreciated over the years. That's the main reason we all drive such old vehicles.

I'm not sure about ammo but guns already have an excise tax on them. That's why an AR is less expensive in pieces than if it is complete from the factory.

It is a tax on goods paid on goods (not income) by a manufacturer within the country as opposed to an import duty paid by an importer on goods brought into the country.

It is not necessarily a "sin tax" but may be used for that purpose.

Politicians impose excise taxes so they can claim to be "taxing big business rather than the common people." In fact, businesses only pass the tax on to their customers, so the "common people" pay anyway but continue to trust the politicians.

Jim

I work for a major telecommunications company, and I can confirm what Duke said about excise tax being imposed against phone calls.

Anyway, they're just taxes on things that the government feels it is entitled to for some reason or another.

Basically they figure that since it's not tea, we probably won't be tossing our cell phones, tobacco and tackle boxes into boston harbour.

Taxation is theft.

Hi Zundfolge,

Taxation is theft.

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Taxation is payment for necessary public services. However, anything over one penny collected in tax needed for those services is legalized theft. The difference is slight but important.

Selena

There's already an excise tax on guns and ammo. The money from that tax goes back to the states to support things like conservation programs, hunting, fishing, etc.

Don't forget that any tax on arms is an infringement.

Woody

Don't forget that any tax on arms is an infringement.

Woody

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I disagree. Any unreasonable tax, like the NFA taxes, sure. But reasonable taxes on products are not an infringement on your right to own them.

Ammunition has an 11% excise tax, paid by the manufacturer, and of course added into the price. And then you have all the state and local taxes on top of that.

But reasonable taxes on products are not an infringement on your right to own them.

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The question is not about the right to own a product, but the right to exercise a Constitutionally-protected right and the chilling effect of a special tax on the exercise of that right.

Minneapolis Star v. Minnesota Commissioner of Revenue

Appellant's Claim
That a state special tax assessment on ink and paper used in publication of the Star Tribune newspaper violated freedom of the press.

Decision
Upheld the Minnesota Star's claim and overturned the Minnesota Supreme Court's decision that the special tax did not violate the newspaper's constitutional protections.


Significance
The ruling found that state tax systems cannot treat the press differently than any other business unless substantial justification exists. The state of Minnesota could demonstrate no compelling reason to justify imposing a special use tax on a select few newspaper publishers. Therefore, the tax was in violation of the First Amendment's Press Clause. The ruling was unique in subjecting state laws to strict scrutiny based on mere potential for censorship.

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expvideo said:

I disagree. Any unreasonable tax, like the NFA taxes, sure. But reasonable taxes on products are not an infringement on your right to own them.

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ANYTHING that comes between you and your arms is an infringement. In some cases it can mean the difference between owning and not owning an arm. There are no uncertainties in the meaning of "infringe".

Woody

Excise taxes on firearms were asked for by hunters, way, way back, to be used in wildlife management and restoration--particularly restoration. We were danged near out of deer and turkey, in many areas.

Excise taxes for purely revenue purposes (general fund) include such things as the "temporary" tax on cosmetics and telephones, back in WW II.

Amazing what you learn on this forum.

Actually, the federal communications excise tax, imposed under section 4251 of the Internal Revenue Code, was created in 1898 to pay for the Spanish American War.

I was at the local cigar store yesterday and and the owner showed me the new excise taxes that go into effect April 9th, everything looks like it's going to quadruple in price.

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The new cigar taxes are a result of the SCHIP program. You know, the Child's Health Care program that provides health care to people who are not children, poor, or even citizens. Anyway, the tax has been capped at .40/cigar. If this quadruples the price on your cigars, you're not smoking very good ones!

gc70, you are correct. If it is a special tax on a constitutionally protected item, it is an infringement. If it is the same tax everyone pays on other items, then it is not an infringement. So sales tax on ammo is not an infringement, a special excise tax is. Too bad few in the .gov or the courts agrees.

ANYTHING that comes between you and your arms is an infringement. In some cases it can mean the difference between owning and not owning an arm. There are no uncertainties in the meaning of "infringe".

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So I should boycott the local gun store for not just giving me guns? After all, charging for them comes between me owning them, so it is infringing on my rights, according to your arguement.

Like I said, unreasonable taxes are an infringement. The ATF $200 tax on class III weapons is an infringement. But an 11% excise tax that makes a $10 box of ammo cost $11.10 is not. Because that $1.10 is not keeping anyone from being able to afford the ammo. The $200 tax on class III items was imposed to keep people from being able to afford them.

Reasonable taxes on products are not an infringement on your right to own them. If those taxes are so high that it makes it difficult to afford the product, which would be an infringement, then they are not reasonable taxes.

Look, I don't like paying taxes either, but claiming that you can't reasonably tax guns and ammo because of the second amendment is just silly.

How is taxing guns any different than having to pay a poll tax in order to exercise your right to vote? (Which was summarily declared unconstitutional.)

Who gets to decide what is and what isn't too much to pay in taxes?

It's not a violation of the second amendment; it's a violation of the twenty-fourth. Although, then we get back to the whole "arms are protected, but ammo isn't" tirade.

A poll tax is different from, say, a sales tax imposed on copying services provided to duplicate campaign literature.

How is taxing guns any different than having to pay a poll tax in order to exercise your right to vote? (Which was summarily declared unconstitutional.)

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A poll tax is a tax on an action. A tax on a gun or ammo is a tax on the sale of a product. If it were a tax to own guns (like say you had to pay annually for the right to own guns), then it would be a fair comparison.

There is a tax on gas, even when that gas gets you to the polls. Comparing the excise tax on guns and ammo to a poll tax is just as accurate as comparing a gas tax to a poll tax. It is an unrelated comparison in both cases.