Sales/use tax revenue slightly higher in 2017

RBC | For the county and the Town of Meeker, sales tax revenue was up for 2017, by 10 percent and 6 percent, while Rangely’s sales tax revenue decreased by 4 percent. Motor vehicle use tax dollars increased for all three county entities, while building materials use tax revenue dropped in both towns, the county saw a 50 percent increase. Meeker lodging tax revenue increased 32 percent from 2016, while Rangely’s dropped 18 percent.
In the fourth quarter of the year, for the county, sales tax revenue totaled $266,634 in 2017, compared to $290,357, a decrease of about 8 percent. The fourth quarter was the only quarter of the year to show a decline from the previous year for county sales tax revenue. The county’s sales tax revenue totaled $1,010,564 in 2017.
The Town of Meeker generated $236,473 in sales tax for the fourth quarter, compared to $231,352 in the same period in 2016, an increase of 2 percent. November was the strongest month of the year for sales tax revenue in Meeker, with $86,510.
The Town of Rangely saw sales tax increases in both the third and fourth quarters of the year over 2016, but losses in the first and second quarter of the year for an overall drop of 4 percent. In the third quarter, sales tax revenue was $194,866, compared to $161,955 in 2016. In the fourth quarter, sales tax revenue was $198,146 in 2017, an 11 percent increase from 2016’s $174,624.
Motor vehicle use tax for the Town of Meeker was up 5 percent, from $168,251 to $183,681 in 2017. The Town of Rangely saw a 31 percent increase in motor vehicle use taxes, from $153,176 to $235,605. For the county, motor vehicle use tax revenue was up 4 percent, from $271,442 in 2016 to $306,125 in 2017.
Construction building materials use tax saw significant decreases in both towns, with a 37 percent decrease for the Town of Meeker and a 65 percent decrease for the Town of Rangely. The county saw an increase of 50 percent.
Meeker’s Lodging Tax board reported $46,681 for the year, while Rangely’s Lodging Tax board reported $22,625.
These figures are unaudited and subject to change, according to sales and use tax administrator Deb Morlan.