- Massachusetts Department of Revenue
Maryann Merigan
617-626-4247
meriganm@dor.state.ma.us
(Boston, MA) - Revenue Commissioner Amy Pitter today announced that preliminary revenue collections for August totaled $1.632 billion, $87 million or 5.7 percent more than the same month last year. Better than expected gains in withholding more than offset the shortfall in sales and use taxes and corporate and business collections to end the month $56 million above the monthly benchmark.
Year-to-date tax collections total $3.228 billion two months into the new fiscal year, $99 million or 3.2 percent more than the same period last year and $66 million above benchmark.
“August is a relatively small month for tax collections with no quarterly payments due for most individual and corporate taxpayers,” said Commissioner Pitter. “Income withholding payments came in at a greater pace than expected, likely due to a combination of job gains and acceleration of payments from later months into August.”
Total income tax payments for August were $942 million, $93 million or 10.9 percent over last August and $62 million over the monthly benchmark. Year-to-date income tax collections total $1.8 billion, $80 million or 4.6 percent over the same period last year and $64 million over the year-to-date benchmark.
Income withholding collections totaled $902 million, $93 million or 11.5 percent more than last August and $63 million over the August benchmark. Income tax payments with returns or bills brought in $39 million in August, $1 million or 2.6 percent below last August.
Sales and use tax collections for August totaled $481 million, up $18 million or 3.9 percent from last August but $5 million below what was projected. Year-to-date collections totaled $996 million, $45 million or 4.8 percent over the same period last year and $6 million below benchmark.
Corporate and business tax collections totaled $12 million in August, $23 million or 65.8 percent less than last August and $13 million below the monthly benchmark. Year-to-date corporate and business collections totaled $83 million, $20 million or 19.1 percent less than the same period last year and $7 million above the year-to-date benchmark.
FY2015 Year-to-Date Tax Revenue Through August 31, 2014
August 2014 Tax Collection Summary (in $ millions) (Preliminary as of September 4, 2014)
