City-parish sales tax revenue continues to climb

Sales tax collections in the city and parish, excluding vehicle taxes, increased by 5.5% in September compared to the same month a year ago, according to a report released today by the city-parish finance department. It was the second straight month for which collections posted an increase greater than 5%. In August, collections were up 5.8%. The city and parish collectively netted a bit more than $12.5 million in sales taxes in September, compared to $11.9 million on the month in 2010. Collections were particularly strong inside the city limits. The $7 million collected in incorporated Baton Rouge represents a 6% annual increase on the month, while the $5.5 million collected in the parish constitutes a 4.7% increase. Year to date, sales taxes in the city-parish stood at $110.8 million at the end of September—an increase of $3.4 million, or 3.2%, over 2010 year-to-date figures. Through three quarters of the year, sales tax collections have been higher than 2010 figures in eight of nine months, with August and September increases being the two largest. April was the only month in which collections declined, and that was by a scant 0.27%.