by T.A. DeFeo
One day after Republican leaders called on returning more than $1 billion to Georgia taxpayers, the state revealed some bad news.
On Friday, state officials reported November’s total general fund receipts decreased by 0.1% — or nearly $2.4 million — compared to November 2021. Still, tax collections surpassed $2.2 billion for the month and net sales and use tax collections increased by 9.8%.
On Thursday, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, signed an extension of the state’s motor fuel and locomotive fuel tax and also a supply chain state of emergency. In November, motor fuel tax collections were down nearly $172.5 million from a year ago.
“Thankfully, because we budgeted wisely and carefully and because of our conservative approach, we’re able to make up for the lost revenue in our state budget without impacting the taxpayers of Georgia,” the governor said in remarks Thursday.
Department of Revenue numbers released Friday show that total net taxes were down by about $4.3 million. However, the state partially offset those losses with an increase in other fees, including a 7% uptick in hotel and motel fees.
So far this fiscal year, the state’s total general fund receipts are up 6.2% — or more than $741.6 million — from the same period a year ago. That number includes a 12.4% increase in net sales and use tax collections.
Also on Thursday, Kemp and other Republican leaders announced their plans to give Georgians another $1.1 billion tax refund similar to one enacted earlier this year.
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T.A. DeFeo is a contributor to The Center Square.
Photo “Brian Kemp” by Brian Kemp. Background Photo “Georgia State Capitol” by DXR. CC BY-SA 4.0.
