Oh goody! Another FReeper who thinks tossing out a straw-man argument bolsters his view of the subject at hand.
We were talking about the State inflating the value of privately sold vehicles, not you income taxes. DO try and keep up.
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So Grandpa should have to pay for the privilege of giving a family member his car that he can no longer drive? Do you think a working family should have to pay for the 'privilege' of accepting it?
Do you think a vehicle that was actually sold for $100 due to mechanical issues should be taxed by its blue book value...which could be in the thousands?
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It has NOTHING to do with the State trying to 'fix' what a few dishonest people have done, it has to do with the State deciding the extent of its powers for the sole purpose of collecting revenue.
We have a right to private contract, and the State has NO right forcing ITS idea of 'market value' on two parties who have already agreed what its worth.
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I hope it goes to court and the State gets its keister sued off!
No. And there is a mechanism that a purchaser may use to show what the true value of the used car is, and be taxed at that amount.
Are the opportunity costs of availing yourself of that mechanism higher than I think they should be? Yes.
Will people find a way around this law? Yes. Rather than pay $300 for a certificate of value, I expect that a lot of people will just pay some guy with a used car license $100 for a straw man transaction (which is taxed on the sale price, not book value), and then pay the real seller the balance of the sales price on the side. The buyer saves some taxes, and the used car dealer makes $100 for thirty seconds paperwork.
That just makes this new law a poorly thought out, and hurriedly slapped together, burden on the law abiding and an opportunity for crooks -- not unconstitutional. I get aggravated at people, DUMMIES or Freepers, who assume that any government action that they don't like must be illegal, and that they ought to sue.
As a Texan you ought to know that "a poorly thought out, and hurriedly slapped together, burden on the law abiding and an opportunity for crooks," describes a lot of what the Texas Legislature does when it meets for five months every two years (and yes, I know this particular bill was passed in a special session). The only defense I can offer for the Texas Legislature is that the Legislatures of States who allow them to meet year round, California, New York, do even worse.