Question

As the administrative assistant in the provost's office, allie has to keep supplies stocked. she placed a stationary order for the office. she purchased 3 boxes of office paper for $89.97, pens for $43.96, and clips/rubber bands for $24.97. the total bill was $169.98. is this a reasonable amount if tax were added?​

Answer 1

The total expense would be

$89.97+43.9624.97=158.9$

Let x be the percentage of taxes: the expense after taxes would be

$158.9+158.9\cdot\dfrac{x}{100} = 169.98$

Which implies

$158.9\cdot\dfrac{x}{100} = 11.08 \iff 1.589x=11.08 \iff x=\dfrac{11.08}{1.589}\approx 6.97$

So, she paid about 7% taxes, which seems quite reasonable