The data reflects the effects of closures of restaurants and nonessential businesses due to stay-at-home orders meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus, according to the city of Richardson.
The city collected $3.1 million in sales tax in April, which is $47,262, or 1.48%, less than last year, according to data from the Texas Comptroller’s Office. The city performed better in March, when sales tax collections increased by 5.71% year over year.
The monthly decrease is offset by the city’s year-to-day collections, which so far outpace last year’s receipts by 7.59%.
Richardson’s neighboring cities also took a hit in April. Plano’s numbers were down by 13%, while Dallas saw a 24% decrease. In McKinney, collections were up by more than 12%.
Despite the loss, the city still expects to finish the year with a balanced budget due to sales tax revenue collected thus far and to expenditure cuts that have been made, Assistant City Manager Shanna Sims-Bradish said.
“We continue to monitor the impacts virus-related business closures had on our sales tax receipts,” she said in an email. “At this point, there is not enough evidence to see a trend in any direction, and we remain cautious because the long-term impacts are still yet to be seen.”
