Personal Finance

Watch out for these oddball taxes

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Psst. Looking to get a body piercing in Arkansas? It'll cost you.

Arkansas charges sales tax on body piercing, pet grooming, and gutter cleaning. (Tweet this) And the state has company, according to research by Cheapism.com, a website focused on saving money. Virtually every state has oddball taxes or tax breaks on the books, and it's worth your while to know which ones might apply to you.

"The tax code in every state is just an infinite swamp of complexity," said Michael Raines of Cheapism.com.

Oddball taxes across America

State Taxable Tax exempt or tax break available
ArkansasBody piercing, pet grooming, and gutter cleaningAdmission to rodeos and fairs
CaliforniaFresh veggies for animalsFresh veggies for humans
HawaiiGeneral excise tax on most business activitiesMaintenance of exceptional trees
IndianaBeer nutsBBQ potato chips
KansasTime in a tethered hot air balloonRide in a hot air balloon (counts as transportation)
MinnesotaHip wadersSnowmobile suit
MissouriYoga classesPayments to play video games, air hockey, and pinball
Nevada(Proposed) slot machine taxBody oil (for bodybuilders)
New YorkSliced bagelsUncut bagels
TexasBelt bucklesCowboy boots, hats
Virginia (Proposed) license for cigarette salesOn back to school holiday: lingerie, fur coats, garters
WashingtonCandy containing flourCandy not containing flour

Source: Source: State tax departments, state legislation
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Some of the tax quirks are almost hard to fathom. In Washington state and several others, candy bars that contain flour are taxed, but flour-free bars are not. A ride in a hot air balloon in Kansas is considered transportation, but if you sit in a balloon tethered to the ground, that's considered entertainment – and taxable. A snowmobile suit is not subject to sales tax in Minnesota, but hip waders are.

Read MoreTop 12 weirdest tax rules around the world

In New York, bagels sold uncut are not taxable, but if you want your bagel toasted, or with cream cheese, or both, you will be subject to the processed foods tax. (Tweet this)

"There is a reason tax codes are tens of thousands of pages long," said Rainey.

A number of states also have unusual tax breaks. Bodybuilders in Nevada and elsewhere can deduct body oil as a business expense, for example.

Virginia offers a back-to-school tax holiday, as do many other states. But in Virginia, that tax break covers a number of items not normally found in classrooms, like fur coats, lingerie, garters, and garter belts.

One of the more intricate tax rules is in effect in Wyoming. Wyoming used to just tax tools as a sale of personal property. But in 2014, the state clarified its rule so that "when a tool is lost down a hole or damaged beyond repair during the pre-production casing phase of the well," and a customer has to pay for the tool, it is not subject to sales tax. But a customer who has to pay for a tool lost during the production-casing phase is on the hook for the tax.

Looking to clear your mind from these head-spinning taxes? Don't go to Missouri. That state taxes yoga classes. Ommm, indeed.