Question

At Action Water Sports of Ocean City, the cost of renting a Jet Ski is $42 per half hour, which includes a 5% sales tax. Determine the cost of a half hour of Jet Ski rental before tax.​

Answer 1

$40

Explanation:

You want to know the before-tax cost when the cost after 5% tax is added is $42.

Setup

Let c represent the cost before tax is added. Then the after-tax cost is ...

c +(5%)×c = $42

Solution

We can collect terms to get the equation ...

1.05c = $42

Dividing by the coefficient of c gives ...

c = $42.00/1.05 = $40.00

The before-tax cost of a half-hour rental is $40.