Deal: October tax revenues down -3.2 percent

Gov. Nathan Deal today announced that Georgia’s net tax collections for October totaled $1.71 billion, for a decrease of $56.5 million, or -3.2 percent, compared to last year when net tax collections totaled nearly $1.77 billion. Year-to-date, net tax collections totaled almost $7.19 billion, for an increase of $114 million, or 1.6 percent, over October 2016 when net tax revenues totaled roughly $7.08 billion, four months into the fiscal year.

The Department of Revenue’s recent internal computer system upgrade permitted a one-time reconciliation which validated the release of additional refunds.

The changes within the following tax categories contributed to the overall net tax revenue decrease in October:

Individual Income Tax: Individual Income Tax collections for the month totaled $897.5 million, down from approximately $924.6 million in October 2016, for a decrease of nearly $27 million, or -2.9 percent.

The following notable components within Individual Income Tax combine for the net decrease:

• Individual Income Tax refunds issued (net of voided checks) were up $28.1 million, or 21 percent.
• Individual Withholding payments were up $17.5 million, or 1.9 percent.
• Individual Income Tax Return payments were down $26.8 million, or -24.3 percent.
• All other Individual Tax categories, including Estimated Tax payments, were up a combined $10.4 million.

Sales and Use Tax: Gross Sales and Use Tax collections deposited during the month totaled $931.2 million, for an increase of $40.2 million, or 4.5 percent, over last year. Net Sales and Use Tax revenue totaled $479.8 million, for an increase of $16 million, or 3.5 percent, compared to October 2016, when net sales tax totaled $463.8 million. The adjusted distribution of sales tax to local governments totaled $444.4 million, for an increase of almost $31.8 million, or 7.7 percent, over last year. Finally, sales tax refunds decreased by $7.6 million, compared to October 2016. 

Corporate Income Tax: Corporate Income Tax collections for October decreased by $23.5 million, or -110.1 percent, compared to last year when net Corporate Tax collections totaled nearly $21.4 million.

The following components within Corporate Income Tax make up the net decrease:

• Corporate Income Tax refunds issued (net of voided checks) were up $59.3 million, or 672.8 percent.
• Corporate Tax Estimated payments were up $31.2 million, or 162.4 percent.
• All other Corporate Tax categories, including Corporate Net Worth payments, were up a combined $4.6 million.

Motor Fuel Taxes: Motor Fuel Tax collections during the month totaled almost $146.5 million, for an increase of $3.1 million, or 2.2 percent, compared to October 2016.

Motor Vehicle Tag & Title Fees: Motor Vehicle Tag & Title Fee collections for October totaled $33.3 million, for an increase of approximately $3.4 million, or 11.2 percent, over last year. Title Ad Valorem Tax (TAVT) collections decreased by $11.9 million, or -14 percent, compared to October 2016, when TAVT collections totaled nearly $85.3 million.