So far this year, Richardson has collected $22.6 million in sales tax, which is up from the $21.3 million recorded at the same time last year, according to data from the state comptroller.
Percent increases in year-over-year collections have been consistent since March with June allocations rising by about 30% from $3.1 million to $4.1 million.
“Richardson is benefiting from the increase in business activity being experienced in the DFW region and across the nation,” Assistant City Manager Shanna Sims-Bradish said.
According to the office of the Texas comptroller of public accounts, this growth trend has been seen across the state. On May 12, Comptroller Glenn Hegar announced nearly $1.1 billion in monthly sales tax revenue was distributed to local governments.
Retail leasing activity in Dallas-Fort Worth has improved since the beginning of 2021, commercial real estate firm CBRE said in a first-quarter report. A recent presentation by the Richardson Economic Development Partnership shows 9.6% of the city’s 7.3 million square feet of retail space is currently vacant, which is up slightly from the 9.4% recorded at the end of the second quarter of 2020.
Collections in Richardson varied over the course of the pandemic, according to the data. The city saw a significant drop between February and March, when collections declined by 43% from $5.7 million to $3.2 million. After another dip in April, collections began to slowly increase with revenue fluctuating between $3.1 million and $4.6 million through December.
By the end of 2020, Richardson recorded $43.2 million in sales tax revenue, which was about 40% lower than 2019, when it collected $72.5 million.
Sims-Bradish said the city is cautiously optimistic about Richardson’s performance so far this year.
“While this is positive in the short term, there are long-term concerns we are also watching regarding several metrics, such as inflation and technology sector activity, that can have future impacts on our sales tax numbers,” she said. “Due to these concerns, we continue to budget conservatively and will continue to closely watch it and other income that provide the resources for the services people depend on every day.”
Sandra Sadek contributed to this report.
