November 17, 2010
Secretary Jay Gonzalez
Executive Office for Administration and Finance
State House, Room 373
Boston, MA 02133
Secretary Jeffery Mullan
Massachusetts Department of Transportation
10 Park Plaza, Room 3170
Boston, Massachusetts, 02116
RE: November 15, 2010 Certification of MBTA Dedicated Sales Tax Revenues for the Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2011 – Recertified Fiscal 2011 Base Revenue Amount
Dear Secretary Gonzalez and Secretary Mullan:
Pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws (MGL) Chapter 10, Section 35T, paragraph b, I certify, after consultation with the Commissioner of Revenue, that the projected dedicated sales tax revenue amount for fiscal 2011 is projected to be $653,299,000.
The projected dedicated sales tax revenue amount is the amount of “monies received by the Commonwealth equal to one percent of the gross receipts of a sale as defined by the provisions of MGL chapter 64H and one percent of the sales price of a purchase as defined by the provisions of chapter 64I from that portion of the taxes imposed under the provisions of said chapters 64H and 64I as excises upon the sale and use at retail of tangible property or of services, and upon the storage, use or other consumption of tangible property or of services, including interest thereon or penalties but not including any portion of such taxes imposed on the sale of meals as defined in paragraph (h) of section 6 of chapter 64H The calculation of sales and meals taxes dedicated for the MBTA is net of refunds, abatements, and amounts set aside under paragraph (b) of section 10 of chapter 152 of the acts of 1997 (the “Convention Center Portion”).
The projected dedicated sales tax amount was calculated as follows:
| Fiscal Year 2011 March 1, 2010/May 10, 2010 Certification | Fiscal Year 2011 November 15, 2010 Certification | Change |
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| Projected Sales and Use Tax Collections, Exclusive of Meals Tax | $4,027,180,000 | $4,083,119,000 | $55,939,000 |
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| Percentage due to the MBTA | ´ 16.0% (*) | ´ 16.0% (*) |
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| Projected Dedicated Sales Tax Revenue for FY 2011 (rounded down) | $644,349,000 | $653,299,000 | $8,950,000 |
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| Base Revenue as Recertified on May 10, 2010 | $767,056,684** | $767,056,684 | $0 |
(*) As of August 1, 2009 the sales tax rate was increased from 5% to 6.25% for both regular sales and motor vehicle sales. Based on this new sales tax rate, the MBTA dedication percentage is now 16.00% (1 cent of 6.25 cents per dollar) as compared to the prior dedication percentage of 20% (1 cent of 5 cents per dollar). (**)Pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 10, Section 35T, as amended by Section 3 of Chapter 86 of the Acts of 2010, the FY2011 base revenue amount was recertified by the State Comptroller on May 10, 2010, which resulted in an increase in the FY2011 base revenue amount from $761,840,699 to $767,056,684. | |||
Any shortfall between dedicated sales tax revenue and the base revenue recertified on May 10, 2010 will be made up by quarterly transfers from the General and Highway Funds, pursuant to the MOU and Chapter 10, Section 35T(b). Should you have any questions on the calculation of this amount, please feel free to call me.
Sincerely yours,
Martin J. Benison
Comptroller
Cc:
Senator Stephen C. Panagiotakos, Chairman Senate Ways and Means
Representative Charles A. Murphy, Chairman House Ways and Means
Timothy Cahill, Treasurer and Receiver – General, TRE
Navjeet Bal, Commissioner of Revenue
Matthew Gorzkowicz, Undersecretary, ANF
Douglas Howgate, Senate Ways and Means Budget Director
Jeita Phillips, House Ways and Means Budget Director