July sales tax report provides pleasant surprise

Midwest City sees 13.21% increase in sales tax revenue for July

By Jeff Harrison
Managing Editor

Midwest City received some good news to start the new fiscal year.

Sales and use tax collections increased by double digits in July compared to 2019.

According to the city’s monthly report, Midwest City received $3,729,411 in sales tax revenue in July. That is an increase of $435,067 or 13.21% compared to last year.

The city saw an even more dramatic rise in use taxes with $354,863 in July. That marked an increase of $84,012 or 31.02%. Use tax is a type of sales tax placed on items purchased outside of the state but used inside the state. They include such things as online purchases and building materials.

“We are pleasantly surprised. This is much better than expected,” said Christy Barron, city finance director.

The total sales and use tax collections shattered the city’s estimates, coming in nearly $1 million over the projections.

The July report includes business that was conducted in the last half of May and an estimate for the first half of June.

Midwest City has seen positive signs the past two months. City officials believed June would be bellwether for the city’s economic rebound after declines in the spring due to COVID-19. The city saw a 2.33% decline in sales taxes in June, but a 47.11% increase in use taxes. The city finished the 2019-20 fiscal year ahead about $1.1 million compared to the previous year.

The city’s budget, which went into effect July 1, included about $15.5 million less in expenditures from the previous year. That is due in large part to a projected 6% decrease in sales and use taxes for the 2020-21 fiscal year.

Other local municipalities also saw better than expected sales and use taxes, according to Oklahoma Tax Commission’s July report.

Del City took in $1,090,208.48 in sales taxes, which was an increase of $112,255.08 from 2019. The city’s use taxes also increase by $32,424.18. Choctaw saw its sales taxes increase by $149,954.95 and use taxes jump $37,614.10 over last year. The city received $679,961.33 in sales taxes and $102,847.24 in use taxes. However, sales and use tax collections were down in Oklahoma City. It received $44,501,461 in July, which was $2,528,282.51 less than the year before.