WPCNR MR. & MRS. & MS. WHITE PLAINS VOICE. April 11, 2006 UPDATED April 12, 2006: 10:40 A.M. E.D.T.: A budget watcher takes note of the White Plains sales tax figures and applies the inflation yardstick, this updated commentary includes sales tax and inflation history since 1999:
John,
At the recent budget review, the Mayor, in answer to a question on how long the city could expect increasing sales tax revenue, said that as long as prices kept going up, sales tax collections would go up. The figures:
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As requested:
ACTUAL
Sales Tax Collections Inflation Rate Predicted Collections Next Year
Based on Inflation
99-2000: $34,267,100 3.38 00-2001: $35,425,328
00-2001: $35,787,758 2.83 01-2002: $36,800,552
01-2002: $35,518,199 1.59 02-2003: $36,082,938
02-2003: $34,413,440 2.27 03-2004: $35,194,625
03- 2004: $37,698,713 2.68 04-2005: $38,709,039
04-2005: $40,929,637 3.39 05-2006: $42,337,830
05- 2006 (Projected as of 4-10-06): $42,550,000 (plus $200,000 over inflation rate)
That got me to wondering how much of the current increased sales tax revenue is due to increased prices. Applying the inflation rate to the historical sales tax collections, we find that last year's collections exceeded the amount predicted by inflation by $2.2 million, pointing to increased sales. This year's anticipated collection ($42.5M) is only $200,000 over the amount predicted by inflation.
The normal disclaimers apply - we are applying national averages to local situations. However, it does demonstrate that we must be carefull before attributing any increases to any specific cause.
..don
