Retail sales were up in Fort Collins in August, pushing September sales tax collections nearly $3 million — 4.4 percent — beyond the city’s year-to-date budget.
The Fort Collins Sales Tax Division released its monthly Sales and Use Tax report — reporting September collections on August sales — Monday. It showed net taxable sales subject to sales tax up 10.6 percent over the same period in 2010, while the net taxable amount subject to use tax was up 23.4 percent from last year.
The city is reporting net taxable sales as a more meaningful comparison of year-to-year business growth to account for the 0.85 percent tax increase approved by voters last November that went into effect on Jan. 1.
Total net taxable transactions of $238.5 million were 12 percent higher than those reported in September 2010. Net taxable sales in the downtown area rose 1.5 percent compared to last year.
Two sectors that had been lagging over the past few years showed significant growth over September 2010. Lodging tax collections were $127,160 for the month, an increase of 42 percent over last year, while use taxes related to building permits increased 116.5 percent to $305,516 in September.
National retail sales for the same period increased 7.2 percent year-over-year, compared to Fort Collins’ 10.6 percent increase.