COUNTY SALES TAX CONTINUES ITS UPWARD CLIMB

JACKSON -- Cape Girardeau County's first sales tax check of 1995 showed double-digit growth.

During 1994, the county's half-cent sales tax receipts grew at a rate of 10.7 percent over 1993, to a total of $3.82 million.

This month's check was for $339,877, an 11.4 percent increase over the $305,097 received last January.

This is the largest January check the county has received since enacting the tax 15 years ago.

Checks received in March, June, September and December include receipts from businesses that pay quarterly and are larger than those for other months. The January check is also the largest amount received in a month that was not at the end of a quarter.

County Auditor H. Weldon Macke said the January check represents November and December sales.