Though brick and mortar stores may not be as prevalent as they once were, overall retail sales locally have not declined. That’s according to sales tax revenue numbers in the office of Platte County Treasurer Rob Willard.
Retail sales within Platte County showed a very slight growth in 2019.
That’s according to the revenue generated by the county’s half cent general revenue sales tax. Collections for the county’s half cent general sales tax totaled $9,792,625 in the calendar year 2019. That’s an increase of 1.62% compared to 2018’s total of $9,636,075.
The largest month collections were received by the county for 2019 in the months of March and July.
The collection totals typically reflect activity from two months prior. In other words, the $1,022,809 the county received back from the state in March would reflect retail sales that were made in the month of January, and the $1,076,708 received in September reflects retail sales that were made in July.
Most retailers collect the sales tax and then forward monthly collection payments to the state director of revenue. The state then compiles the totals and sends payment back to the county the following month. This explains the two-month ‘delay’ in reporting of sales activity for any particular month.
Use tax collections in the county for 2019 were basically flat. In 2018 the county collected $4,540,402 in use tax revenue. That total fell but very slightly, only dropping by about $5,000 in 2019.
The use tax is typically applied to things like out-of-state purchases.
Overall, total general sales tax and use tax combined revenues totaled $14,328,222 in 2019, up 1.07% from 2018. In Platte County, the use tax revenue goes into the general fund.
The county’s dedicated sales taxes for parks and roads saw some growth in 2019.
The half cent park tax brought in $9,576,109 in 2019, up by 2.12% from $9,377,660 in 2018.
Platte County has a 3/8th cent sales tax for roads. That tax brought in $7,182,080 in 2019, up by 2.12% from the $7,033,238 it generated in 2018.