DALLAS – Oklahoma’s Treasury receipts for November soared more than 12% over the same month last year, the eighth consecutive month of growth, according to State Treasurer Ken Miller.
At $893.4 million, November collections were up by 12.4%, or $98.6 million, compared to receipts from November 2016. The last time monthly gross receipts grew by more than 12% was in February 2012.
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“Gross Receipts to the Treasury, insomuch as they indicate general economic activity, paint an encouraging picture as we enter the holiday period,” Miller said. “Sales tax collections, a measure of consumer confidence, are up by double-digits and the bulk of holiday shopping including Black Friday is not yet measured with this report.”
The positive report comes as Oklahoma lawmakers await Gov. Mary Fallin’s call for a second special session to increase revenue to cover a shortfall brought about by a Supreme Court ruling that threw out a cigarette fee passed in the regular session. The court ruled that passage of the revenue measure in the final week of the regular session by less than a 75% supermajority violated the state constitution.
In the first special session that ended Nov. 17, Fallin’s proposed tax increases fell five votes short of the 75% supermajority needed in the House. The bill that garnered bipartisan support would have closed a $215 million shortfall in the current budget.
Failure to pass the measure was declared a negative credit event by Moody’s Investors Service, which already had a negative outlook on the state’s Aa2 general obligation rating.
Miller reported that state sales tax receipts grew by 11.4% for November. The three other major revenue streams – gross income, gross production, and motor vehicle taxes – also increased during the month compared to November of last year.
Gross Receipts to the Treasury for the past 12 months are up by 4.7% compared to the prior 12 months with all major revenue sources showing growth, Miller said.
The tax commission attributes $24.4 million in November to new revenue resulting from legislation enacted during the last regular session. The largest amount, $10.4 million, is from a 1.25% state sales tax on motor vehicle purchases. A $5 fee on motor vehicle registration increased collections by $1.8 million for the month.
The amount of new revenue generated in November by boosting the 1% horizontal drilling gross production tax rate to 4% is reported as $7.8 million by the tax commission. Elimination and suspension of gross production rebate payments added approximately $3 million to gross collections during the month.
Ending a discount for businesses that remit sales tax added $1.3 million during November, and a new fee assessed on professional sports tickets contributed $28,613.
Since August, law changes from last session have yielded $90.6 million in new gross revenue.
At 4.4%, Oklahoma’s seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate in October was down by one-tenth of a percentage point from the prior month, according to figures released by the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission. State jobless numbers improved by one-half of a percentage point over the year. The U.S. jobless rate was set at 4.1% for the month.
The state unemployment rate has been higher than that of the U.S. for 12 of the past 18 months.