This is Planet Money from NPR.

Sometimes it's the most mundane distinctions that give us a glimpse into how the systems

around us work.

And today's show is one of our favorite examples of that.

It originally ran in 2014.

In New York State there is a sales tax on sandwiches.

It's in the law if you buy a sandwich in a restaurant or a grocery store, in most places

in the state you pay close to 8% tax.

Now that's simple enough, right?

We all know what a sandwich is.

Something delicious slapped between two slices of bread.

But when it comes to taxes, nothing is simple.

I have here New York State Tax Bulletin ST835.

It's entitled What Is Considered a Sandwich?

This document is a couple pages long and it goes into inscrutiating detail on sandwiches,

both hot and cold.

For instance, you don't have to have two slices of bread.

A sandwich for tax purposes is defined as, and I'm quoting here, made on bread or on

bagels, on rolls, in pizzas, in wraps, or otherwise, and regardless of the filling or the number

of layers.

There's this whole list of examples.

A buttered bagel?

...