Hertiage Auction Net Effective Rate

[Exhibitman]

There seems to be quite a bit of inaccurate information in this thread. Here is how it works on the ground:

Use tax and sales tax are the same thing: the difference is just over who sends the money to the state. Sales tax is transmitted ("remitted") by the seller, who either collects it from the buyer or absorbs it; use tax is remitted by the buyer.

I have a CA resellers permit, which requires me to collect and remit sales tax on in-state sales. When I list an item on eBay I list the sales tax rate for the state in the eBay listing tool. When a CA resident buys a card from me eBay adds the sales tax to the total the seller has to pay. I get the money. At the end of the year (I don't meet the volume threshold for quarterly returns and payments) I file a return electronically with the Board of Equalization where I list the amounts of CA and total sales I had and the utility on the state's web site calculates the tax. I then pay the tax that I collected or should have collected to the state.

There is also a line item on the sales tax return for use tax. I track the items I buy for my collection from AH's, eBay and the like as to which I have not paid sales tax, and I put them on a spreadsheet. At the end of the year when I do my sales tax return I pay the use tax. Is the system perfect? No. I probably miss some items over the year but I do my best to get it right.

Here's the thing everyone who is having kittens over paying the taxes on their card buys need to remember: if you scoff at the law and pay nothing and you are caught, you are lucky if you pay penalties and interest. A pure tax scofflaw can be referred out for criminal prosecution (Leona Helmsley, Wesley Snipes). That will really wreck your day. If you do your best to track and pay and you get audited and the auditor finds a mistake, you pay the tax and interest and penalties but the matter ends there. In the long run, it is better to pay the taxes you owe when you owe them and not sweat an extra several points on a freakin' baseball card, because if paying the taxes you owe on a card is a make or break financial issue for you, you need to step away from the bar and admit you have a problem.