WASHINGTON: Arizona taxable sales topped $100 billion for the first time in 2015, according to new data from the Arizona Department of Revenue. Taxable sales climbed 8 percent year over year as they closed in on $102 billion for 2015.
Taxable sales, garnered from the state’s transaction privilege tax filings, show huge gains in accommodations, up 67.5 percent while professional management and administration activities climbed 27.6 percent. Information, financial, insurance and real estate also were up 25.6 percent over 2014.
Arizona’s sales tax revenues support the state’s general fund. The stream is measured on a fiscal year, fiscal 2016, running July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2016. So far this fiscal year, TPT taxable revenues are up 9.6 percent over the same eight-month period in fiscal 2015.
The big boost came over the last three months, with revenues boosted by events in December, January and February. ADOR said the Fiesta Bowl, College Football Championship and Waste Management Phoenix Open resulted in higher than normal revenues in some categories over the period from December through February.
January sales tax revenues hit a record, nearly $10 billion and roughly $1.3 billion over December. February, normally the slowest month for retail sales, was still strong with $8.2 billion in revenues, just $400 million shy of December’s $8.6 billion. ADOR cautioned that changes in sales tax collections and tracking did result in understating retail sales by $75.5 million in January.
