News
Monthly Sales Tax, Use Tax Collections from Mid-Dec. to Mid-Jan.
ARCHIVED PRESS RELEASE: Published 2-5-2010
The preliminary report from the
Oklahoma Tax Commission regarding sales tax collections for the
City of Tulsa have now declined 11 consecutive months, including
the last eight months of declines averaging 11 percent.
According to the preliminary report, sales tax collections from
mid-December to mid-January totaled $17,771,635, a 9.8 percent drop
from $19,696,317 for the same month last year. Use taxes, which
businesses and others pay on purchases of equipment from
out-of-state vendors, were above budget estimate at $1,598,877.
From the same period a year ago, use taxes have declined by 7.8
percent or $135,619.
"As expected, we are continuing to see sharp declines in our
sales tax revenues. Our combined receipts for both sales and use
tax are slightly lower than our revised budget expectations," Mayor
Dewey Bartlett said. "With the $10 million reduction to our general
fund, we will continue to monitor expenses closely until the end of
the year."
The General Fund portion of sales and use tax totaled $1.34
million for the month, a little less than $100,000 lower than our
revised budget expectations.
Mayor Bartlett added, "It should be clear that the economic
problems that we are experiencing are the result of declining
revenues due to the national recession, and are not any
express actions by the current or previous administrations. Both
the Bartlett and Taylor administrations have collectively reduced
our annual expenses by $25 million."
