Question

Maizah bought a pair of pants and a briefcase at a department store. The
sum of the prices of the pants and the briefcase before sales tax was $130.00.
There was no sales tax on the pants and a 9% sales tax on the briefcase. The
total Maizah paid, including the sales tax, was $136.75. What was the price, in
dollars, of the pants?

Answer 1

before taxes, it was 130...after taxes, it was 136.75...this means the 9% tax on the briefcase was (136.75 - 130) = 6.75

9% of what is 6.75
0.09x = 6.75
x = 6.75/0.09
x = 75...this is the price of the briefcase.

so the price of the pants, being that the sum of the pants and the briefcase is 130, is gonna be (130 - 75) = $ 55 <==