Baton Rouge finally got some good news on the sales tax collection front: After months of declines, consumers increased their spending in May. Roughly $16.5 million in sales taxes, including those on vehicle sales, were collected in East Baton Rouge Parish in the month, marking a 1.3% increase from the same month last year, according to the latest report from the city-parish Finance Department.
Inside the city limits, the roughly $9.2 million collected represented a 1.7% increase, while areas outside incorporated Baton Rouge saw a 0.7% increase—over the same month last year—to about $7.3 million.
The report also breaks out collections on vehicle sales, which are typically more volatile than general sales, and those were also down by about 17% inside the city limits and about 6.3% outside the city limits.
Year to date, total sales and vehicle tax collections in the city-parish stood at $78.2 million through May, a 4.9% decline compared to the first five months of last year.
