Collecting the proper Wisconsin Sales Tax on Etsy Internet Sales

*UPDATE: As of 10/1/19, this is no longer your responsibility. Etsy will be collecting and remitting Wisconsin Sales Tax as they are classified as a Marketplace Facilitator.

Who wants to think about all that stuff? You made it, took pictures of it and described it in great detail. If you're in Wisconsin and someone from another state buys your creation, great, send it out and you're done. However, if a fellow Wisconsinite goes ahead and purchases something from your shop, you have to collect the sales tax applicable to whatever address they're having your item shipped to. WHAT!? It would be nice if Wisconsin just said, "Hey, you know what, why don't we just apply the tax at the point of origin?" No, that would be way too easy. So, what do you do now?

Etsy allows you to set up a State Tax collection rate. It also lets you set up individual tax rates pertaining to specific zip codes. The current tax rates for Wisconsin can always be found at https://www.revenue.wi.gov/Pages/FAQS/pcs-taxrates.aspx 

Then find yourself a list of zip codes for the Wisconsin counties. Here's a good resource: http://www.zipcodestogo.com/Wisconsin/

I created a .txt file with all of the zips and delimited them with commas since Etsy requires them.

-----------------------
5.0% Tax Rate
-----------------------
-----------------------
MANITOWOC
-----------------------
53015,
53042,
53063,
54207,
54214,
54215,
54220,
54221,
54227,
54228,
54230,
54232,
54240,
54241,
54245,
54247,
-----------------------
MENOMINEE
-----------------------
54135,
54150,
-----------------------
OUTAGAMIE
-----------------------
54106,
54113,
54130,
54131,
54136,
54140,
54152,
54165,
54170,
54911,
54912,
54913,
54914,
54915,
54919,
54922,
54931,
54942,
54944,
-----------------------
WINNEBAGO
-----------------------
54901,
54902,
54903,
54904,
54906,
54927,
54934,
54947,
54952,
54956,
54957,
54963,
54964,
54980,
54985,
54986,
-----------------------
5.1% Tax Rate
-----------------------
-----------------------
WAUKESHA
-----------------------
53005,
53007,
53008,
53018,
53029,
53045,
53046,
53051,
53052,
53056,
53058,
53064,
53066,
53069,
53072,
53089,
53103,
53118,
53119,
53122,
53127,
53146,
53149,
53150,
53151,
53153,
53183,
53186,
53187,
53188,
53189,
-----------------------
RACINE
-----------------------
53105,
53108,
53126,
53139,
53167,
53177,
53182,
53185,
53401,
53402,
53403,
53404,
53405,
53406,
53407,
53408,
53490,
-----------------------
5.6% Tax Rate
-----------------------
-----------------------
MILWAUKEE
-----------------------
53110,
53129,
53130,
53132,
53154,
53172,
53201,
53202,
53203,
53204,
53205,
53206,
53207,
53208,
53209,
53210,
53211,
53212,
53213,
53214,
53215,
53216,
53217,
53218,
53219,
53220,
53221,
53222,
53223,
53224,
53225,
53226,
53227,
53228,
53233,
53234,
53235,
53237,
53244,
53259,
53263,
53267,
53268,
53274,
53278,
53288,
53290,
53293,
53295,
-----------------------
WASHINGTON
-----------------------
53002,
53017,
53022,
53027,
53033,
53037,
53040,
53060,
53076,
53086,
53090,
53095,
-----------------------
OZAUKEE
-----------------------
53004,
53012,
53021,
53024,
53074,
53080,
53092,
53097,
-----------------------
5.5% Tax Rate
-----------------------
ALL OTHER COUNTIES
-----------------------

Notice I didn't add all the 5.5's? Even though the STATE tax rate is 5.0%, only a small portion of counties have that as their total rate. So, if you make the STATE tax rate in Etsy 5.5%, you'll catch most of the buyers in the state. You now have to enter all the other zip codes and apply the corresponding tax rates to them and check the shipping box if it applies as well. These rates will override the catchall state rate when anyone living at an address with one of these zip codes purchases something.

I encourage you to make your own file as I make no claim to the level of accuracy of the above list. It's meant to be a visual aid that demonstrates how one would go about doing all of this without pulling their hair out.

Happy selling!

Foxconn, Wisconsin and the rally to bring everyone together to make it all happen...but for whom?

Wisco Libre | acrylic mixed media on wood

Here's the bill summary if you'd actually like to read it for yourself instead of getting sound bites from various news sources focused on the minutiae they think will sell more advertising...

http://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/misc/lfb/bill_summaries/2017_19/0001_ss_ab_1_foxconn_fiserv_legislation_8_8_17.pdf

Do poke around, inform yourself...

http://www.wisconsin.gov/Pages/SearchResults.aspx?q=foxconn%20legislation

Interesting things to note: Foxconn is the trade name for Hon Hai Precision Industry Company Ltd. and here's a list of its subsidiaries. Of course, many of them have subsidiaries of their own too.

And let's not forget that our very own Fiserv, which just bought out Monitise as well as PCLender, is poised to get $10 million if they stay anchored in Wisconsin.

So, that means Amazon, Uline and Foxconn will be huddled together; warehousing/fulfillment, packaging and manufacturing all in one place. They'll have access to not only land and air but sea via the Saint Lawrence Seaway and then there's Fiserv nestled to the north, capable of providing software development, not to mention a newly acquired product line that can expedite the lending process with the whirlwind of real estate that will be changing hands all around the city and beyond.

Now, if the Post Office would just figure out their build out plan and move...

https://www.biztimes.com/2016/industries/architecture-engineering/grand-plans-unveiled-for-redevelopment-of-downtown-postal-center/

*hint: Oak Creek may not be the one and only option for the USPS anymore, possibly a major facility tucked between the giants in Kenosha would be in order?

Maybe Fiserv will buy into the old Post Office complex or other software developers will start competing for the cheap land downtown. Can't exactly afford anything on the west coast anymore.

Where is all this money coming from for such a push? There's certainly been no shortage of deals going down. In fact, it's hard to keep track of them with so much emphasis placed on Americans not getting along with one another.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://amp.ibtimes.co.in/saudi-arabia-infuses-27-billion-into-sovereign-wealth-fund-706452&ved=0ahUKEwj19vy6ksXYAhXCy4MKHcEkAqMQFggjMAI&usg=AOvVaw1vR4-Hx4DJnkXDkCtmIpKU&ampcf=1

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kerryadolan/2017/04/05/masayoshi-sons-new-universe-softbank-vision-fund-apple-trump/#232684402fe4

http://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2017/05/us-president-signs-deal-with-saudi-arabias-sovereign-wealth-fund-for-93-billion-boosting-us-tech-sector.html

In short, we have two competing parties in this country bilking its citizens out of rational discourse while a third quietly moves the ball around, endlessly building the largest pyramid on earth no one can physically see.

The opportunity is there for all to have a share, you just have to know which way to move.

Good luck everyone.

The Smiling Orange

Here it is, the Zine I created some time ago…that foretold of a brand that would grow to become the all encompassing brand of brands from which all brands are made. An ever weaving thread tying the world together, from your head to your hands, what you think shall become. Marketing, the media, technology and the like all perfectly synced to deliver anything necessary to keep engagement alive. Are we there yet? Getting real close? For crying out loud! Who knows, right?

We’d have them available at our concerts. Performing as the band with the same name of the brand, things got serious on that level as there was now a vocal component to the object model. We were essentially a live action parody of the goings on of modern culture that people could bear witness to. Branding and all that nonsense. We’d give out a demo along with the zine for people to take home.

As far as the show went, sometimes it worked out great, other times it didn’t…but it always drew intently focused faces from those who showed up. A total thrill it was, locking eyes with someone while soaking the room with words and precisely timed sounds accented by choreographed gestures. What were the people attached to those faces thinking? It’s hard to say. Anyone we asked seemed to struggle with a description. It's a shame if you think about it, because anyone tasked with describing something new always feels compelled to offer a perfectly crafted summation of the amalgamation of references they associate the new experience with. What happens when the shoe doesn’t fit? What are people supposed to say then? It's gotta come from somewhere! If aficionados of any listed examples don’t agree with the correlation? Forget it, end of discussion. 

Anyhow, here it is for those that would like to check it out today, never mind it’s a decade or so old now. If you’d like your own copy, as there are a few left, go ahead and grab one from the E|store. Don’t know that I’ll ever keep it going in its original form, but if I ever do? Hey, you’ll have in your possession a #1. Enjoy.

Here are a few related links on the subject...

The Smiling Orange Comic on YouTube

The Smiling Orange digital downloads via Bandcamp

The Smiling Orange website showcasing a variety of memorabilia