Answer: each pencil costs $0.52 before sales tax was added
Explanation: Assume that the price of each pencil before sales tax is x.
The total amount that Alliya paid can be computed as follows: Total payment = x*number of pencils + sales tax
We are given that: Total payment = <span>$6.70 </span>number of pencils = 12 pencils sales tax = <span>$0.46
Substitute with the givens in the above equation and solve for the price of each pencil (x) as follows: </span>Total payment = x*number of pencils + sales tax 6.70 = x * 12 + 0.46 6.7 - 0.46 = 12x 6.24 = 12x x = 6.24/12 x = $0.52