Why are batteries suddenly so expensive?

[Mtsoxfan]

My bad, I'm talking about the education tax, which is the majority of my tax bill. Each town sets there own rate in addition to. Thanks.

 

[Shawn T. W.]

Yup the state school tax, is part of the property tax, but the local town and county also taxes for roads, fire/police, maybe a hospital and other stuff ...

 

[fustsgt]

This is why I dropped Statistics . . .

I forget who gat credit for "there are liars, , da## liars, and Statisticians

 

[CH4Ohio]

I forget who gat credit for "there are liars, , da## liars, and Statisticians

What I recall from the first day of STAT 101 is:

“Figures lie and liars figure.”

 

[rontaki]

I forget who gat credit for "there are liars, , da## liars, and Statisticians

Before you use a statisic, be sure to wash the off it!

 

[dnw64]

Wasn't that way when I lived there, moved out in 2007 ... And this also doesn't agree with that Lamoille County Vermont Property Taxes - 2025

I know @dnw64 currently lives in Vermont ... What's the story?

Not the same everywhere.
From https://education.vermont.gov/data-and-reporting/financial-reports/vermont-education-tax-rates

Step 5: Education spending per weighted pupil is divided by the property yield to determine a district’s equalized tax rate.​

• The property yield is the amount $1.00 of tax will raise per pupil statewide.
  • The FY2025 yield is $9,893.
  • An easier way to think of it is: if a district spends $9,893 per weighted pupil, its tax rate will be $1.00.
  • If a district spends 10% more than the yield per pupil, its rate will be 10% higher, or $1.10; 20% higher gives a rate of $1.20, etc.
• The equalized tax rate is the rate as if all properties were listed at fair market value.

 

[Oaktree]

Wasn't that way when I lived there, moved out in 2007 ... And this also doesn't agree with that Lamoille County Vermont Property Taxes - 2025

I know @dnw64 currently lives in Vermont ... What's the story?

Unless its a second home/non resident. I'll have to check on that link you gave.

Vermont's tax structure is needleslly confusing. A primary residence is taxed differently than a second home, or even a woodlot. Seems bassackwards...you use a lot more town services at your residence than at a piece of property that isn't, but the tax rate is lower. I guess the assumption is that if you own property you don't live on, you must be "rich" and deserve to pay a higher rate.

Don't even get me started on their state income tax, especially for non-residents. I live in N.H., but when I was still working some of my income came from Vt. and was subject to their income tax (only that income earned in Vt). You'd think you'd be able to calculate it from W2s or 1099s from Vt. business only, but no, it's derived from your federal income tax...in my case a joint return, my wife earns nothing in Vt. Calculating % of business deductions is a nightmare. Unfortunately, tax software is of no help since Vt. doesn't allow e-filing from non-residents, and there doesn't seem to be an easy way to contact their tax bureau.
Don't remember it being that complicated when I lived in southern N.H. and worked in Mass., but that was a long time ago.

Not sure what any of this has to do with batteries though...

 

[CliffordK]

I have also noticed that it is hard to find a basic $50 car battery. And, what happened to those lifetime warranties? Surely if I had bought a good Sears Diehard battery with a lifetime warranty as a teenager, I could have made good use of it.... well, until Sears vanished.

I thought I'd look up the price of Lead and Copper.

Global price of Lead

Graph and download economic data for Global price of Lead (PLEADUSDM) from Jan 1990 to Jun 2025 about lead, metals, World, and price.

fred.stlouisfed.org

Producer Price Index by Commodity: Metals and Metal Products: Copper and Brass Mill Shapes

Graph and download economic data for Producer Price Index by Commodity: Metals and Metal Products: Copper and Brass Mill Shapes (WPU102502) from Dec 1953 to Sep 2025 about copper, mills, metals, commodities, PPI, inflation, price index, indexes, price, and USA.

fred.stlouisfed.org

The price of Lead bounced up significantly from 2003 to 2007 (Mid to late Bush era). It has then bounced around some, but has remained more or less constant since then.

The price of Copper apparently also rose during the Bush era, went flatish, then started rising again in 2020.

Anyway, inflation in the raw products to make car batteries, especially 20 years ago, as well as general inflation over the years has impacted the battery prices.

 

[CliffordK]

This price increase seems to have impacted flooded lead batteries more than AGM batteries. It is one of the reasons I will choose Odyssey batteries if I can find them. A bit more expensive than the flooded batteries, but they're good batteries.

 

[BleedingOrange]

The battery in my BX2370 is 10 years old. Just for fun, I priced out what I believe was a replacement group 27 battery, and it was less than 70 dollars at Wal-mart in the USA. That is less than I have paid for some small lawnmower batteries in the past.