Local sales-tax collections in NYS fell by 10 percent in 2020

ALBANY, N.Y. — Local sales-tax collections declined by $1.8 billion, or 10 percent, in 2020 compared to 2019, amid the coronavirus crisis, the Office of New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli recently reported.

The decline exceeded the 6 percent drop in local sales-tax collections seen in the 2009 recession compared with 2008.

Collections were uneven in 2020 as the pandemic developed and affected business activity in the state. In the first quarter (January-March) — mostly occurring before the economic impact of the COVID-19 global crisis swept through the Empire State — sales-tax collections grew by 4.6 percent over the same quarter in the previous year, the comptroller’s report said. However, collections plunged by 27.1 percent in the second quarter (April-June) compared to the second quarter in 2019. State-mandated closures of non-essential businesses in late March led to a spike in unemployment and a sharp drop in retail and food-services sales in the following months. 

The third quarter (July-September) and fourth quarter (October-December) saw continued decreases in sales-tax collections although less steep — at 9.5 percent and 7 percent, respectively. The reopening of many non-essential businesses in June helped business rebound, although some restrictions were still in place. Collections increased outside of New York City in the third and fourth quarters, compared to the same period in 2019.

You can see the full state comptroller’s report at: https://www.osc.state.ny.us/files/local-government/publications/pdf/local-sales-tax-collections-decline-by-10-percent-in-2020.pdf?utm_source=weekly%20news&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20210207&utm_campaign=fiscal%20oversight&section=body