Sales Tax Gains Indicate Economy Here Recovering

Only three months into the year, La Grange’s city sales tax revenue has shot past half a million dollars. That’s the second highest total ever for the first quarter of a year.

March’s rebate from State Comptroller Glenn Hegar put $167,180 into the city treasury, nearly 29 percent more than the same month a year ago, when the pandemic was first affecting businesses.

The first-quarter total for La Grange is $553, 352. Not since 2015 has the city received this much in sales taxes.

The recovery has impacted most other Fayette County towns, too. While La Grange is up 17.4% compared to last year, Fayetteville is up 24.8%. This is by far the most Fayetteville has ever received in the first three months of the year.

Round Top is up 11.8%, Schulenburg up 10.1%, and Flatonia up 9.3%. Only Carmine is down for the year, and that is only by less than 1%.

Other towns in the area are mostly seeing gains, but not so widely. Of the 18 area towns tracked by the Record, 10 have increases, but eight have decreases. Caldwell is down nearly 24% for the year and Shiner down nearly 20%.

Eagle Lake, on the other hand, is up nearly 34% from 2020’s pace. La Grange’s 17.4% is the next biggest gain.

Nine area counties levy the optional local sales tax. Four of them are down from a year ago, mostly by large margins.

Fayette County has received $549,497 in sales tax this year, which is up nearly 1% from last year. Caldwell County (Lockhart and Luling) has seen the biggest increase, 9%.

Other parts of Texas have not fared nearly so well. According to Hegar, whose office oversees Texas taxes, the total amount sent to cities, counties and other entities this month was down half a percent from last March’s allocation.

Year to date, Texas cities have received 2.2% more sales tax revenue so far this year than last, while counties are down 3.5%.