Press Release

March Net Tax Revenues Up 7 percent

April 8, 2019

The State of Georgia’s net tax collections for March totaled nearly $1.67 billion for an increase of $109 million, or 7 percent, compared to March 2018, when net tax collections totaled almost $1.56 billion.  Year-to-date, net tax collections totaled $17.04 billion for an increase of $380 million, or 2.3 percent, compared to the previous fiscal year, when net tax revenues totaled $16.66 billion through three quarters.

The changes within the following tax categories help further explain March’s overall net tax revenue increase:
 
Individual Income Tax:  Individual Income Tax collections totaled almost $774 million, for an increase of $64.1 million, or 9 percent, compared to last year when Income Tax collections totaled $709.8 million.

The following notable components within Individual Income Tax combine for the net increase:

• Individual Income Tax refunds issued (net of voided checks) were down $51 million or -8.7 percent
• Individual Withholding payments for March fell by $45.8 million, or -4 percent, compared to last year
• Individual Non-Resident Income Tax Return payments increased $24.3 million or 43.6 percent
• All other categories, including Income Tax Assessment payments, were up a combined $34.6 million

Sales and Use Tax:  Gross Sales and Use Tax collections increased by $59.3 million, or 6.7 percent, over last year’s total of $887.2 million.  Net Sales and Use Tax increased by nearly $17.5 million, or 3.9 percent, over March 2018 when net sales tax totaled roughly $451 million.  The adjusted Sales Tax distribution to local governments totaled $473.9 million for an increase of $48.7 million, or 11.4 percent, over last year.  Lastly, Sales Tax Refunds fell by roughly $6.8 million, or -62.1 percent, compared to FY 2018.

Corporate Income Tax:  Corporate Income Tax collections for March totaled nearly $109.3 million, which was an increase of $27.9 million, or 34.3 percent, over last year’s total of $81.4 million.

The following notable components within Corporate Income Tax make up the net increase: 

• Corporate Income Tax refunds (net of voids) decreased slightly by -0.2 percent from last year’s total
• Corporate Income Tax Estimated payments increased by $5.5 million or 11.1 percent
• Corporate Income Tax Return payments increased by $2.2 million or 6.9 percent
• All other Corporate Tax types, including Business Occupation Tax payments, were up a combined $20.1 million  

Motor Fuel Taxes:  Motor Fuel Tax collections increased by $3 million, or 2.2 percent, compared to FY 2018.

Motor Vehicle - Tag & Title Fees:  Motor Vehicle Tag & Title Fees declined by $1.8 million, or -4.7 percent, for the month, while Title Ad Valorem Tax (TAVT) collections increased by $1.2 million, or 1.9 percent, over last year’s total of $62.6 million.