Sales tax dips but still runs ahead of ‘22 record

By Buck Collier, Special Correspondent
Posted 5/17/23

HERMANN — Holding true to form, May’s General Fund sales tax check broke the monthly trend and came in lower than amounts received in the first four months, but the year-to-date total …

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Sales tax dips but still runs ahead of ‘22 record

Posted

HERMANN — Holding true to form, May’s General Fund sales tax check broke the monthly trend and came in lower than amounts received in the first four months, but the year-to-date total continues to outpace the 2022 record-setting level of revenue.

Gasconade County Treasurer Mike Feagan Thursday morning reported the monthly totals of the various sales taxes to the County Commission. The General Fund tax, which fuels the bulk of county government operations, produced a May reimbursement check of $80,175, a significant drop from the $106,373 received in April.

That’s not unusual, Feagan said.

“Typically, May is a low month,” he said during the Commission’s weekly session. “But,” he added, “we’re still ahead of last year.”

Indeed, the May check gives the county a total General Fund sales tax amount of $487,383 for the first five months, compared to $470,298 received during the same period of last year. And considering that last year was the third consecutive year for Gasconade County to top $1 million in General Fund sales tax revenue, the figures posted so far seem to bode well for a similar showing this year.

And as Southern District Associate Commissioner Jerry Lairmore, R-Owensville, noted, the General Fund revenue is bolstered by a healthy amount of Use Tax dollars. Feagan reported that the Use Tax — the sales tax applied to purchases made from out-of-state vendors — produced $27,871 for May. While that amount is down from the unusually large $47,156 received in April, still it is $13,000 more than the amount received in May of last year. So far this year, the Use Tax has raised $169,911.

Last year the Use Tax raised $237,081; Northern District Associate Commissioner Jim Holland, R-Hermann, recently suggested the tax might reach $300,000 by the end of this year. This will be the second full year to collect the Use Tax,which has not been figured into the county’s operating budget. That means the money is unencumbered — available to be tapped if other funding should run short before the end of the year.

The county’s half-cent Law Enforcement sales tax shows a corresponding drop, as well, in the May check from the Missouri Department of Revenue. For this month, the county received $51,672, compared with the $69,555 received in April. For the first five months of the year, the county has received $329,176 while five of the municipalities within Gasconade County have received $109,725 as their portion of the revenue-sharing program. That makes for a total of $438,902 raised by the tax so far this year.

Voters approved the Law Enforcement sales tax in April of 2022 with the understanding that the revenue would be split 75 percent-25 percent between the county and the municipalities of Owensville, Hermann, Rosebud, Gasconade and Bland — the cities that have a certified law enforcement officer on duty. Morrison does not have a certified law enforcement officer. If it hires one, it would become eligible for a portion of the 25 percent designated for municipalities.

The cities receive their portions based on population. With Owensville having the most residents, it receives the largest share — about $10,600 a month for the first four months. But with the amount down in May, Owensville received $7,923 as its share for this month. Through the first five months, Owensville has received $50,473; Hermann has received $39,501; Bland has received $8,778; Rosebud has received $7,680; and Gasconade has received $3,291.