State tax revenue collections up slightly in September
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From staff reports
ATLANTA – The state of Georgia’s net tax collections in September totaled roughly $2.25 billion for an increase of $15.7 million, or 0.7%, compared to last year when net tax collections totaled $2.23 billion. Year-to-date, net tax revenue collections totaled $5.83 billion for an increase of $21.1 million, or 0.4%, compared to September of Fiscal Year 2019.
Changes in the following tax categories account for September’s overall net tax revenue increase:
Individual Income Tax: Individual income tax collections during September totaled $1.13 billion for a decrease of $27.4 million, or -2.4%, compared to last year when net individual tax revenues approached $1.16 billion.
The following components within individual income tax combine for the net decrease:
♦ Individual income tax refunds issued (net of voided checks) increased by $36.1 million or 59.1%.
♦ Individual withholding payments increased by $1.9 million, or 0.2%, compared to last year.
♦ Individual income tax return payments were up $8.6 million, or 53.8%, over last year.
♦ All other individual tax categories, including estimated tax payments, were down a combined $1.8 million.
Sales and Use Tax: Gross sales and use tax collections increased by $39.2 million, or 3.9%, over last year for a total of roughly $1.05 billion for the month. Net sales and use tax decreased by nearly $5.3 million, or -1%, compared to FY 2019, when net sales tax revenue totaled $514.1 million. The adjusted sales tax distribution to local governments totaled $528.3 million, an increase of roughly $34.2 million, or 6.9%, over last fiscal year. Sales tax refunds increased by nearly $10.4 million, or 163.8%, compared to September 2018.
Corporate Income Tax: Net corporate income tax collections increased by $46.2 million, or 22.2%, compared to September 2018, when net corporate tax revenues totaled roughly $208.6 million for the month.
The following components within corporate income tax comprise the net increase:
♦ Corporate tax refunds issued (net of voided checks) were up $6.6 million, or 36.4%.
♦ Corporate income tax estimated payments were up $58.5 million, or 29.7%, for the month.
♦ Corporate income tax return payments declined by $4.8 million, or -30.8%, from last year.
♦ All other corporate tax payments, including S-corp payments, combined for a decrease of $0.9 million.
Motor Fuel Taxes: Motor fuel tax collections during the month declined by $3.9 million, or -2.4%, down from a total of $164.8 million in FY 2019.
Motor Vehicle — Tag & Title Fees: Motor vehicle tag and title fee collections fell by $0.6 million, or -2%, compared to September 2018 when motor vehicle fees totaled $29.8 million. Title ad valorem tax collections were down by $20.3 million, or -25.3%, compared to last year’s total of $80.4 million.