DATA: Sales tax revenue fell in Grapevine, rose in Colleyville and Southlake in 2020

State Comptroller Glenn Hegar distributed $510.7 million in local sales tax allocations to Texas cities Dec. 11, 2.5% less than the allocations for December 2019, according to a press release.

Grapevine received 20.55% less in allocations than it did during the same period last year, while Colleyville and Southlake received slightly more than they did in 2019, according to the comptroller’s office.

How much a city makes in sales tax revenue can help indicate economic trends, and this year's trends were shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Colleyville only received $496,784 in December and a little more than $6 million for the entire year to date, but that represents a 7.35% increase over the previous year’s total. The city's 2020 budget expected limited growth while SH26, Colleyville's main commercial corridor, remains under construction. Southlake received $2.5 million in December and $29 million for the year, an increase of 2.13% over 2019 for the year to date. Nearby cities, including Keller and Roanoke, saw similar boosts in revenue over last year.

Grapevine was hit hardest by pandemic revenue loss. The city collected about $3 million in sales tax revenue in December and $37.8 million for the year, 15.32% less than in 2019.

Sales taxes are collected by the state, which receives 6.25% in state tax per sale. Cities are allowed to charge additional sales tax of up to 2%, and the comptroller’s office distributes that locally determined portion once a month. The allocations distributed in December are based on sales made in October, according to the press release by the comptroller.

Total allocations to Texas cities for 2020 remained almost flat over last year, increasing by 0.4%.