La Grange Sales Tax Up Slightly; Most Area Towns Down

Round Top, Carmine and La Grange are among the area’s few economic bright spots so far this year, as reflected by local sales tax collections.

These three are ahead of last year, while Fayette County’s other four towns are running behind last year’s receipts.

And of the 18 other towns tracked by the Record, 11 have collected less sales tax in 2026 than they did in the same period last year.

April’s receipts from the State Comptroller’s Office push La Grange’s sales tax total for the year to $929,935, a 3.7% increase compared to last year. Carmine’s $55,542 is up 3.5% from last year. Round Top has grown the most, with an 8.9% gain. At $163,200 throughApril, Round Top now ranks third among the county’s seven towns that collect sales tax. Even the big cities in the region are down for 2026, the State Comptroller’s report shows. Bastrop is the area’s largest town for retail, and it’s down 4.1% for the year, and Brenham is down 3.5%. On the other hand, Sealy has had explosive gains in sales tax revenue this year, with more than double last year’s pace.

For April alone, Sealy got just under $712,000. That’s nearly half a million dollars more than last April’s $257,000. For the first four months of this year, Sealy has received $2.7 million, compared to $1.3 million last year.

Just where the new money comes from isn’t known since the state does not disclose data on individual businesses, only on the total rebated to local entities. Also having a big gain is Austin County, where Sealy is located. Among the nine area counties that levy the optional local sales tax, four are running ahead of last year and five are behind. Fayette County is down 15.5% from last year, with just under $1 million received from January through April.