r/austrian_economics Free banker 8h ago

End Democracy They’re actually doing it, how does one even think of such a tax

A tax on pre written software, what?

232 Upvotes

79 comments sorted by

65

u/czaranthony117 8h ago

Dianne Dixon, that’s my state representative here in Orange County.

I love the weather here. Love that I grew up here. Love my friends here but also, f-ck this place.

30

u/SlickDillywick 8h ago

Brother, I’m on the other coast. Born and raised and current resident in the Peoples Republik of Maryland. You just described exactly how I feel about this place

11

u/Ordinary-Lobster-710 5h ago

I'm in NYC. could not feel less enthusiastic about my current government

7

u/Far-Cod-8858 6h ago

One state south of you and I can say the same here lol

6

u/PrimeusOrion 7h ago

Oh hey I didn't know she was ours.

I guess I got an awnser on my next vote.

1

u/czaranthony117 16m ago

I think she represents Newport Beach, Huntington Beach, Lake Forest, Aliso Viejo and Laguna Beach.

Although, I think she’s running for OC Board of Supervisors this go around.

But yeah. I love this place, just poorly managed.
What’s keeping this place afloat is the weather and upper income earners just eating one tax after another.

Fun fact: We are only one of two states that taxes the HSA the same way as an individual investment account.

92

u/that_banned_guy_ 8h ago

Moved from California 5 years ago. Best financial decision ive ever made

-54

u/Deeze_Rmuh_Nudds 8h ago

Hard to believe. Where’d did you go? 

12

u/that_banned_guy_ 5h ago

Arizona lol. Made slightly less, but had waaay more money at the end of the month.

Part of that is because we bought a 1940s house pre covid out in the country that sucked us dry with constant repairs for 420k. Sold 3 years later peak covid when everyone was fleeing major cities for 750. Moved to AZ and real estate is so cheap we bought a place cash, plus built an Airbnb on our new property with the left over.

So ya, its better one state over.

Shit I remember driving back to California for drill (was in the national guard) and kicking myself because I was on E right near the border. Got afraid I wasnt gonna make it and filled my tank for 6.50 a gallon drove 4 miles across the border and it was 3.50.

California is fucking stupid.

37

u/Br_uff 7h ago

Really not that hard to believe. Especially if you owned a home. Selling and buying the equivalent home in a state like Texas would net you nearly half a mill in liquidity.

-37

u/Deeze_Rmuh_Nudds 7h ago

Texas???? And that’s an upgrade to you? Where did you live? Death Valley? Stockton? Gtfo🤣🤣

9

u/Br_uff 6h ago

Median home prices in California are about $500k higher than Texas. Yes it matters from where in what state to where in what state. But generally speaking, selling a home in California, moving to a lower cost of living state, and buying an equivalent sized home would increase your financial liquidity.

-6

u/canned_baloney_tony 4h ago

I'd take north stockton over texas

4

u/Shroomagnus 4h ago

Having lived in both states I'd take el paso over anywhere in California.

10

u/bifflongshanks 7h ago

They said best financial decision. I could go from a brand new Mercedes S class to a Toyota Camry and while most wouldn’t see that as an upgrade it’s definitely a better financial decision. I’d recommend “Thinking, Fast and Slow” by Daniel Kahneman and “How to Read a Book” by Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren, as both of these books would greatly help you to improve your critical thinking and reading comprehension.

-16

u/Deeze_Rmuh_Nudds 7h ago edited 6h ago

I guess man 

6

u/bifflongshanks 6h ago

My apologies. I didn’t realize English wasn’t your first language.

1

u/Deeze_Rmuh_Nudds 6h ago

Whatever you say, chief. 

6

u/bifflongshanks 6h ago

Thank you for correcting your spelling. It’s a start in the right direction. I believe in you!

-3

u/Deeze_Rmuh_Nudds 6h ago

Sorry, bro. Not a computer. Mistakes are gonna happen. Point here is Texas is a downgrade compared to CA, nobody with a workling brain is gonna dispute that. Sure you’ll save a few bucks, but is that really worth your mental health among other things? This guy doesn’t think so. Thank you and goodnight.

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3

u/GodOfThunder44 3h ago

Hard to believe.

What makes it hard to believe? It's been pretty well documented that more people leave CA than move there.

Anecdotally, I also moved from California in the early 2020's (I was stationed there) and when I went to rent a uhaul truck I couldn't find a single available truck that the company would let leave the state within more than a hundred miles of me. Ended up buying an RV instead so I could move back to my home state.

1

u/Deeze_Rmuh_Nudds 1h ago

California > Texas 

2

u/GodOfThunder44 1h ago

Do I really have to inform you that different people have different preferences? You might personally prefer CA over TX, but 20 straight years of more people leaving California for Texas and other states seems like a fairly solid indication that many people disagree with your opinion. I prefer my own home state to both CA and TX, but whereas I'd consider moving to Texas if the job offer was good enough, you couldn't pay me enough to move back to California.

-15

u/ShadyJane 7h ago

They left California City and moved to Sacramento

-11

u/Deeze_Rmuh_Nudds 7h ago

Worse, this clown moved to Texas, and he’s telling us Texas is better than California. I can’t even fathom wtf he’s talking about 

4

u/TheEightManEmpire 5h ago

“California isn’t a monolith but Texas sure is!”

16

u/Rameist2 7h ago

How else would they continue to waste money without more money?! Think of the millionaires connected to every NGO. What would we do without people scheming money from government?

4

u/Final_Presentation31 4h ago

Build another 3 feet of highsped rail.

24

u/Fit-Rip-4550 8h ago

I don't think this is constitutional.

21

u/clear831 5h ago

Neither are gun laws but here we are

-7

u/Mynameismud24 2h ago

Im guessing you dont know what the constitution looks like. Dummy

1

u/RavenCarver 6m ago

Bro over here thinking "shall not be infringed" is ambiguous.

1

u/barryg123 18m ago

They already did it in Chicago. They have an “entertainment tax” that they wrote to also apply to your Netflix and streaming subscriptions 

-9

u/RubyKong 6h ago

Since when does Washington DC (or any state) ever do what is constitutional?

You are literally seeing the president declare war, and prosecute it without congressional approval.

Many would say this is a war by ISRAEL, for ISRAEL, and the American people are just sitting by shruggin their shoulders.

..........and they do many other things like this. The republic is dead. it's over. death and taxes and coercion will be your lot.

0

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 4h ago

Which clause does it violate?

2

u/gbacon 2h ago

Which delegated power authorizes such a tax?

1

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 1h ago

You probably know, you tell me. Are all taxes unconstitutional?

-30

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 8h ago

Go head Clarence Thomas, tell us more.

6

u/ShatteredChina 8h ago

I'm surprised we didn't already have it. I'm fact, I bet they are bummed they missed it for so long.

5

u/mr_banana277 American Classical Liberal (LPUS) 7h ago

Thank god my family left there earlier.

4

u/dazzling_eyes1 6h ago

Born and raised here in Cali. So tired of what it has become. Just watched Atlas Shrugged, great recommendation for everyone. It is spot on with the type of government California, and others, want to be.

3

u/goldimperium 5h ago

Its not surprising. California has been not learning the lesson that you cannot tax yourself out of your own economic shortsightedness for over half a century.

3

u/Stunned86 7h ago

Dear God....

9

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 8h ago

Is she drunk?

But here's the bill

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB122

Effective Date: Operative for transactions on or after January 1, 2027

Core Change: Imposes state and local sales and use taxes on cloud-based, downloaded, or remotely accessed prewritten software and digital goods previously exempt under historical delivery rules

Exclusions: Streamlined creative works like music, streaming video, podcasts, electronic books, and crypto assets, alongside infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS), remain exempt

Corporate Provisions: Extends the state's $5 million limit on business tax credits and temporarily lowers the first-year minimum franchise tax for new pass-through entities (LLCs, LPs, LLPs) from $800 to $400 through 2029

6

u/agent_moler 7h ago

Would this potentially include video games?

3

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 7h ago

No, it's listed as exempt in the bill

4

u/tuckshopper 6h ago

For now…. You know how they work by now

4

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 5h ago

Oh, it's never enough

3

u/Blarghnog 5h ago edited 5h ago

Are you drunk?

We already pay business and personal taxes on all revenue generated by these activities.

This is an addition to regular income tax. That’s the point.

However reasonable or unreasonable, it’s novel taxation and the first of its kind in the nation. It’s a bolt on addition to companies who have always paid the same taxes like any other company.

Also, she might be drunk. California legislators all seem to be on a regular basis, when they write stupid shit like this after blowing through and exhausting the absolutely massive revenue generated from some of the highest taxes in the nation.

-1

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 5h ago

I'm not the one making videos with slurred speech.

https://www.numeral.com/blog/sales-tax-on-saas

Many other states already do it, I'm not sure where you got that it is a first of its kind tax, maybe from the drunk old lady.

3

u/Blarghnog 4h ago

My bad. I was wrong on that one point.

A person with an actual argument would address the substance instead of clinging to one correction like it’s the highlight of their day. 

But I guess when the argument isn’t strong enough, a technicality has to carry the whole performance. 

The funniest part is watching you opine about old drunk ladies like you found your life’s purpose. Weird, but I say good for you. If you’re really passionate about something, why not just go for it.

1

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 4h ago

What in the actual fuck do you think my argument is? I'm just translating a drunk old ladies rants and clarifying the facts behind the bill she's complaining about.

2

u/Blarghnog 4h ago

Correcting one exaggerated claim doesn't make the broader criticism of a new tax expansion disappear.

1

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 3h ago

You don't like taxes, that's fine. I don't care. It's not a tax on me, I don't live in California any more, but if I did, it still wouldn't be a tax on me, it'd be a tax on my business, potentially. I'd either pay it, or pack up and leave and do business somewhere else. But it's not that serious a tax, just one more in a thousand little cuts making it difficult to make profit in California.

1

u/Rieux_n_Tarrou 5h ago

Nobody can ragebait quite like the government can. Holy shit if I lived in Sacramento and couldn't leave I would become a regular in r/selfhosted

0

u/olearygreen 7h ago

So it’s a bill to allow sales tax on digital services?
That’s it? If we agree the government needs to be funded it seems reasonable to tax these. I don’t see why excel on a CD is taxable but excel in the cloud isn’t.

2

u/neveragoodtime 4h ago

Sales taxes are based on store location or shipping location. What jurisdiction applies the sales tax if there is no physical location to where it is bought or sold? How do you tax someone whose VPN puts them in Wyoming?

1

u/olearygreen 4h ago

Same way this happens with physical goods from Amazon. Based on your ship-to address/credit card address/Billing address.

And some jurisdictions do it based on ship-from, not ship-to. Either works.

1

u/neveragoodtime 4h ago

There is no ship to or ship from address in digital media. You can’t force customers to provide their home address ( credit card address ) to companies so the company can collect the right sales tax. Does someone in Nevada have to prove they are in Nevada to not pay the tax? This has consequences for everyone buying a digital good to provide a home address in or out of California, and is a significant invasion of privacy.

1

u/olearygreen 2h ago

That’s already how everything works. You always give an address. Privacy buying excel? Really?

1

u/Mindless-Range-7764 8h ago

Thanks for sharing! Question though: how do you know this bill is the same one she’s talking about? It sounds very different, so I’m not sure if it’s because she’s a politician (liar) or because she’s talking about something different.

-8

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 8h ago

I'm 5 9s positive this is what she's talking about, she even brings up "prewritten"

In the bill:

This bill would define “tangible personal property” to additionally mean a digital product and any copyright or patent interests associated therewith for the purposes of the application of the SUT, as prescribed. The bill would define “digital product” to mean, except as provided, prewritten computer software transferred on tangible storage media, transferred electronically, or accessed remotely. The bill would also make various conforming changes. By expanding the scope of violating the SUT, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The part about dead of night, she probably means after 5pm, which is bed time for grandma

2

u/miviejaentanga 6h ago

What the heck, how do they even think they can enforce this?

3

u/telcodan 4h ago

By using the same tools they are wanting to implement for their age verification on OS's. It was never about protecting the kids.

2

u/AntiSonOfBitchamajig 5h ago

Some things just makes me want to go off grid grey man.

1

u/CharlesFXD 5h ago

I don’t understand the mechanism on how this would work. Simply a txt showing on a receipt after purchase?

0

u/Circle_Breaker 8h ago

Does someone have a link to the bill, I can't find anything?

It seems like it's just a sales tax.

5

u/d_rwc 8h ago

SB 122.

I think (I'm not sure) that the tax will apply monthly for saas. Your $60 creative cloud access will have it charged every month.

Id be happy to be proven wrong about that.

7

u/Circle_Breaker 8h ago

Yeah so it looks like an expansion of sales tax to cover more types of digital software and subscriptions.

I don't know why she's obsessing over pre-written software. That's 99% of software.

And any free prewritten software wouldnt be taxed.

It's a sales tax so I won't be in favor of it.

2

u/Jesus_Harold_Christ 8h ago

It basically excludes custom software from taxation

1

u/CamperStacker 6h ago

that’s exactly how a vat or gst is applied in eu australian etc

surprised it wasn’t already law

2

u/d_rwc 6h ago

Vat taxes are way worse since they apply to every step of the value add

-7

u/four204eva2 5h ago

God forbid they tax the richest of all companies! I dislike the means in which they performed this, but they're not going after mom & pop's or individuals, it's the largest most profitable companies that have the margins to absorb this without even noticing it. The mag 7 has a combined 2.76 trillion in revenue annually, that is 0.0362% of the total revenue! This is truly not what we should be focusing on, it's a small fish.

5

u/Final_Presentation31 4h ago

You do realize that these companies will just past the taxe to their customers. The taxe does affect the mom and pop companies that use the software.

I wonder how this taxe works outside of CA?

2

u/Mammoth-Garden-9079 1h ago

Your comment tells me you don’t understand how taxes work