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Paris Hatters manager Alex Sledge calls for sales at the historic store in downtown San Antonio during the pandemic. The company is one of the oldest companies in the city that survived during the pandemic.
Annual sales tax returns in Texas cities show that San Antonio and Dallas are barely ousting the state’s other largest cities in terms of economic recovery from the pandemic.
Texas Public Radio compared sales tax returns in major cities through July this year with those for the same period in 2020. Both are pandemic years, but spending and sales tax collection are improving across the state.
Every month the state auditor collects city sales taxes from the retailers and then returns their share to the cities. The more consumers spend, the higher those returns are, which makes them an indicator of how healthy a local economy can be.
The Auditor released its latest sales tax returns for the first seven months of the year this month, showing that San Antonio and Dallas are virtually on par when it comes to increases in sales tax returns in the state’s four largest cities during the comparative period. Both rose 13.1%
Austin up 12.8% and Houston 9.8%
Outside of the state’s four most populous cities, other top 20 cities in Texas saw even bigger gains. Arlington jumped 28% and McAllen rose 22%
Midland was the only top 20 Texas city to see a drop in sales tax returns this year, a drop of just over 6% compared to last year. The city was hit by a drop in oil prices during the pandemic.
Broken down by dollar amounts, San Antonio, the state’s second largest city, received a total of $ 270 million in sales tax from the state between January and July of this year.
Dallas, the third largest city in Texas, got $ 233 million back and Houston, the state’s largest city, got nearly $ 508 million back.
Austin, the fourth largest Austin, got $ 177 million back. Arlington, which ranks sixth, has recouped $ 88 million. The nineteenth Midland got $ 49 million back.
To compare all of the top 20 cities in Texas, visit the Top 20 Cities Sales and Use Tax Comparison Summary (texas.gov).
This story originally appeared on Texas Public Radio. TPR was founded by and is supported by the community. If you value and are able to appreciate his commitment to the highest standards of responsible journalism, please consider your today gift of support.
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Sales Tax Revenues Show Big Texas Cities On Mend From Pandemic
