Georgia tax collections rose by 1.1% last month compared to August of last year but only because the state wasn’t collecting the sales tax on gasoline and other motor fuels a year ago. Not counting the $181.6 million in fuel taxes that came in last month, tax receipts for August were down by 4.8% compared to August of last year according to the Georgia Department of Revenue.
Individual income taxes declined by 5.2%, a drop-off driven by an increase in refunds issued by the revenue agency combined with a decrease in payments. Tax collections in Georgia have declined in four of the last five months. Then-state economist Jeffrey Dorfman predicted last January that Georgia tax revenues were likely to drop this year because last year’s huge increase in capital gains tax payments was unlikely to be repeated.
