County sales tax disappears from your wallet each time you plunk down money for a purchase. Why? What does it do?

The answer varies around the country, of course. But there are certain things that apply to most counties, no matter the state in which you live, and we'll talk about those.

Basically, a county sales tax is levied on top of any state sales tax that may exist. For instance, your state may have a sales tax of two percent, and that is charged on any sale made within the state. State sales taxes typically help pay for things like the costs of running state government, State Patrol, and other things that generally benefit the entire population, state-wide.

A county sales tax, on the other hand, helps pay for county-specific items. Sometimes a sales tax increase is levied or voted on for a specific purpose--transportation needs, constructing a new county building, or other things. At other times the county may need money for its general revenue fund to help pay for a wide variety of items or services, and the county sales tax may feed into the general fund.

County sales tax is often used in conjunction with money from other county revenues, like property taxes. Because of that it can be difficult to get details on exactly where the money goes. Specifics like this are very difficult to find on county websites, but there are some items for which county sales tax revenues are typically used.

New county buildings are one use for the money. County administration needs a place to happen, and if the current county building is in poor condition or in need of extensive renovation, funds from the county sales tax can help pay for that.

Streets and street improvements are another very common use for sales tax money. New construction requires new streets. Potholes need fixing, and weather causes damage to streets and support systems.

Your county likely has a library system, and that's another thing that your county sales tax can help pay for. Buildings, heat and light, personnel and the books, CDs and computers are all part of the expenses paid for by county sales taxes.

Very often a county sales tax will be raised to help pay for a sports stadium, convention center, county medical facility or some other large facility that will serve the needs of the entire county. These increases can be for a specific time period, after which the tax returns to its previous level.

Other times it will be an ongoing tax because once the facility is built, there will be ongoing costs for personnel, utilities, maintenance, and other costs.

Most county councils or other governing bodies will propose the new facility and/or the increase in the county sales tax. Depending on your county's legal setup, the tax increase may be put to a vote of the people or the county council may approve or deny the request.

Almost everyone feels their county sales tax is too high. And that may be more a function of a lack of communication about what the benefits are from that tax money. Next time your county wants to increase the sales tax, find out where the money will be going. Then you'll be in a better position to decide if this tax is going to benefit you.