It is quite obvious something does not add up in regards to ‘demand’..............In todays local paper we had this story about sales tax collections for our local stadium...Sales-tax collections for the Miller Park stadium district are already 7.4% behind last year’s collections, according to new data. In 2009, the district finished the year 9.45% behind calendar year 2008’s sales tax collection amount..............If there is this huge spike in ‘DEMAND’ how come sales tax collections are still going DOWN? I look at sales tax collections as one of the best indicators of economic activity because the gov’t can’t fudge the numbers. They have every incentive to collect every dime of sales tax owed to them, and the fact that collections are down this year vs 09 (when 09 was a dreadful year!) is very troubling. Gov’t can massage the jobs numbers, the GDP numbers, etc., but the local tax collection numbers are not subject to such hijinks and they show me that any increase in demand is iluusory./
http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/89483647.html
Sales-tax collections for the Miller Park stadium district are already 7.4% behind last year’s collections, according to new data.
The district received $1.8 million in sales-tax collections from the state Department of Revenue in March. The March distribution represents the January proceeds of the 0.1% stadium sales tax, which has been collected in Ozaukee, Washington, Milwaukee, Waukesha and Racine counties since 1996.
The $1.8 million collected is about $257,000 less than the district had forecasted. In a letter to district board members, Mike Duckett, the district’s executive director, said the March collection was the third lowest March collection since the tax was first collected.
“Year to date, the sales tax collections in 2010 are lagging about $432,500 behind our forecasted/ budgeted amount for the year,” Duckett told board members.
In 2009, the district finished the year 9.45% behind calendar year 2008’s sales tax collection amount.
Since 1997, the average annual growth in the sales tax has been 2.97%, far below what had been expected and forecast. As a result, the district now expects that the sunset year for the Miller Park sales tax will be between 2016 and 2018, at least two years later than originally thought.
Industry picks up first. I’ve heard 2 people in different fields say things are changing in their little worlds. Now, I’m skeptical that it really points to anything, but I can hope!
Re: Mil Cty taxes...just because bureaucrats counted on 3% tax growth ad infinitum, doesn't mean it would come true. They were acting like home flippers who thought housing prices never went down. Now, they just don't want a crisis to go to waste.