The latest estimates from the Ohio Department of Taxation indicate the Richland County general fund will lose $1 million in sales tax revenue during June, July and August because of closings and social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
County Commissioner Tony Vero said at the board’s regular meeting Thursday that he revised the loss upward from an $800,000 estimate made last month after receiving preliminary figures from the state that show May sales tax receipts will be down 17 percent, excluding tax revenue from auto sales. The state distributes sales tax revenue about three months after it is collected.
“I spent the good part of yesterday (Wednesday) and the day before updating budget projections — particularly on the sales tax side — updated my spreadsheets and made some tweaks,” Vero said. “I am projecting we are going to be down $1 million from what we projected for the next three months, starting in June.”
The figure included a 50 percent drop in auto sales tax collections, which represent 14 percent of all sales tax revenue. Regarding other revenue sources, he said interest income from inactive fund investment is down 25 percent for the year while Local Government Fund and casino tax revenue from the state are down 36 and 37 percent, respectively, from May 2019.
“We’re now starting to see the effects of COVID-19, so we’ll probably have to schedule an all elected officials meeting (to discuss the revenue loss),” Vero said. The meeting is expected to be held sometime in July.
Vero also had some good news regarding the estimated $2 million the county has been told it should receive from the federal CARES Act that is designated to help local governments with COVID-related expenses. A senior policy analyst with the County Commissioners Association of Ohio told officials that the current guidance from the federal government indicates that CARES funds can be applied to public safety personnel, including sheriff, jail and possibly 911 general fund expenses.
Recent Comments