Stephen Sprunk wrote:
John Levine wrote:

Many states claim that residents of their state have to pay sales tax on
products shipped by a seller in another state, whereas AFAIK no state
taxes products shipped to a buyer another state.

You confuse "sales tax" and "use tax". It violates the interstate commerce
clause of the federal constitution for one state to impose a sales tax on
a seller in another state. They get around it by imposing a use tax on a
buyer of a good from outside the state.

If the seller is in the same state as the buyer, the buyer's rate applies
to shipped orders, not the seller's rate.

You are making an inapplicable universal statement. What sales tax rate
applies varies from state to state.

And then there's Congress's Internet sales tax moratorium, so the same
product ordered by the same buyer from the same seller may by taxed if
the order was by phone or mail but not if online.

Again you are confusing sales taxes with use taxes.

We will leave as an exercise for the student why prices for gasoline
are invariably quoted gross, with all taxes included.

Excise taxes, eg. on motor fuels, are usually included in the price, but
sales taxes are not. Most states exempt products from sales tax if
subject to a specific excise tax, but some don't.

John Levine offered an observation of the tradition of stating a price
inclusive of all taxes on motor fuel sales. As sales taxes are a type of
excise tax, you failed to offer an explanation as to why the convention
exists.

My state imposes sales taxes and motor fuel excise taxes on motor fuel
sales. Is my state in the majority or minority for imposing multiple
excise taxes on motor fuel sales? I have no idea for I haven't looked
it up. You probably didn't either.