County tax revenue sees a recent surge

Despite a lackluster start to the year, sales tax revenue in Cape Girardeau County is outpacing 2013 figures by more than 4.5 percent -- thanks to robust numbers in recent months.

Monthly revenue reports for July and August show the general sales tax and Proposition 1 sales tax together generated more than $1.2 million. Each is a half-cent tax levied countywide, and they constitute the majority of Cape Girardeau County's tax income. The Proposition 1 sales tax supports the county sheriff's department and county roads.

Cape Girardeau County Treasurer Rodger Hudson said Friday because of the complicated protocol governing tax reporting, fluctuations are common.

"If you look at the spreadsheet, you'll see some pretty big swings up and down. That didn't used to happen," he said. "You can't just explain why it does that."

It could reflect a boost in consumer spending or an unexpected coincidence of taxes being paid, and may be a combination of the two.

He said although the reason for the increase is subject to speculation, the fact the county has recouped from early lulls is welcome news. The fact the county is on track to beat last year's performance also is heartening.

"It was down through June," he said. "The good news is that this month it's up."

A total of $550,364.10 in sales taxes was collected in the June period, according to the county's monthly report. That number was 20.1 percent lower than the nearly $689,000 collected in the June 2013 report. The monthly reports issued by the county reflect revenue collected several weeks before and do not reflect revenue in the actual month.

But July's report showed much stronger numbers at $788,854.17 -- more than 33 percent higher than the amount of $591,921.33 collected in the July 2013 report. In that one period, the revenue total collected for the year to date compared to the previous year went from 1.4 percent lower to 3.86 percent higher.

The August report also showed a healthy increase from August 2013 -- more than 11 percent higher -- with sales-tax revenue at $439,351.64, compared to $394,758.69.

Hudson said the pace of growth most likely will normalize somewhat in the coming month or two. Month-to-month tides are not as telling as year-to-year trends, however, as measured by the previous year-to-date percentage change, which rarely has been north of 2.5 percent in the past five years, when it's in the black at all.

With a year-to-date total 4.53 percent higher than last year, the current swell is notable. Although expected growth for the year is forecast as slight, it keeps in line with estimations for the county's total collected sales-tax revenue to continue to increase.

In 2012, the county received $6,630,258 in sales tax revenue. The sales-tax revenue total for 2013 was $6,728,466.50. The county estimation for the 2014 sales-tax revenue total is $6,912,800.

Because the county has seen flat or low growth in the past, the Cape Girardeau County Commission approved in January an $11.8 million budget for 2014, which required similarly flat spending by county officeholders. The county spends between 90 percent and 93 percent of its general revenue budget each year.

tgraef@semissourian.com

srinehart@semissourian.com

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