Sales, tax revenue down 20 percent

RBC I Sales and use tax revenue remained low during the fourth quarter of 2011 across the board for Meeker, Rangely and Rio Blanco County.
For the county, revenue from sales and use tax, which includes collected taxes for retail sales, motor vehicle use taxes and building materials taxes, was 25.6 percent lower than 2010, dropping from $1,198, 377 to $891,714 for the fourth quarter.
The town of Rangely reported a decrease of  3.8 percent, down from $313,500 to $310,728.
The town of Meeker reported a 23.9 percent reduction in sales and use tax revenue, dropping from $367,978 to $280,027.
For all three tax entities combined, the fourth quarter of 2011 was 21.6 percent lower than the fourth quarter of 2010, dropping from $1,879,855 to $1,473,469.
Sales and use tax receipts include collected taxes for retail sales, motor vehicle use tax and building materials use tax.
These numbers are unaudited and subject to change.