Tag Archives: Taxes

North Carolina Sales Tax Revenue

Continuing with our series of posts about our new state tax revenue section, I highlight the case of sales tax revenue for North Carolina. Unlike many other states, sales tax revenue has increased significantly despite the economic downturn, as shown in the graph below.

In fact, sales tax revenue hit a high of $1.5 Billion in Q2 2010. It should be noted that the NC sales tax rate was increased temporarily by an additional 1% as of September 2009. The increase will expire on July 1, 2011.

California sales tax revenue history

Our new state tax revenue section makes it easy to view the effects of the current economic downturn on state tax revenues. Take for example the case of California. As shown in the graph below, revenue from sales taxes hit a peak of $9.5 Billion in Q4 2007 and a recent low of $7.3 Billion in Q1 2009. The amount collected for Q2 2010 (which is the most recent amount reported to the US Census Bureau) was $9.1 Billion, which some would argue is clear proof that the economy is recovering, while others say that it is just a temporary increase due to temporary government stimulus.

Source: US Census Bureau