just when you thought you couldn't make it up fast enough...

Dan Noren

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On a rainy Wednesday morning, straphangers seize their consciousness from a freshly sliced bagel with cream cheese and a cup of piping hot coffee.
But with New York's budget mired in red territory, the state's Department of Taxation and Finance is ramping up its audits on a subtle food tax policy. CBS 2 New York breaks down the issue that is threatening to slice one upstate bagel chain's bank account -- what constitutes a prepared food item?

For three years, Bruegger's Bagels looked past a punch to consumers' wallets -- if an item is handled or eaten in a store, it has a tax attached to it. Now, they've hired an attorney to fight off three years of backed-bagel taxes. As the New York Post writes, the slicing fee adds almost 10 percent to a patron's receipt at any local food oulet. Either the customer takes the hit at the exit, or the business takes the hit for forgetting the charge.

CBS 2 New York dove into some other common situations that may affect your morning rush. Buy a cup of coffee that you pour yourself and it's tax free. Buy one that's filled by a store employee behind the counter, and pay that aforementioned tax. Select a whole cake from your local grocery store, and pay a flat rate. Purchase a slice of cake from a pastry shop's cold case, and serve up a few more pennies.
 
its just part of politics and how they like paying there bills with others money..there are many similar stories i am sure if we were told the rest of the story..in many other states.. ours has its hidden spots as well.
 
Back in the nineties in an amusement park we had to program the point of sale system for all sorts of gotchas for taxing pastries. Less than a dozen single items (cookies, danishes) had to be taxed, a dozen or more were considered a bulk/family purchase. Loaves that were sliced were taxed, whole ones weren't. There were other things too regarding candy, but these were the ones I remembered.
 
If they start taxing toilet paper if you use it in the bathroom, Im in a whole lotta trouble.
I could live without the bagels.
I love NY State. (no sarcasm here, I really love NY state)
 
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