State Sales Tax Revenue Growth Continues

“Growth in state sales tax revenue continues to be strong, while moderating from the double-digit pace of recent months. The rate of growth in sales tax collections continues to be highest from oil- and gas-related sectors.”

Staff Report

Last week, the Comptrollers office released the October state sales tax revenue total of $2.6 billion, a 7.3 percent more than in October 2017.

“Growth in state sales tax revenue continues to be strong, while moderating from the double-digit pace of recent months,” Hegar said. “The rate of growth in sales tax collections continues to be highest from oil- and gas-related sectors.”

Total sales tax revenue for the three months ending in October 2018 was up 12.6 percent compared to the same period a year ago. The sales tax is the largest source of state funding for the state budget, accounting for 57 percent of all tax collections.

In October 2018, Texas collected the following revenue from other major taxes on motor vehicle sales and rentals, motor fuel and oil and natural gas production:

• motor vehicle sales and rental taxes — $438.4 million, down 2.6 percent from October 2017;
• motor fuel taxes — $298 million, down 4.2 percent from October 2017; and
• oil and natural gas production taxes — $439.9 million, up 52.4 percent from October 2017.