Staff Report
Growth in St. Landry Parish sales tax collections continued to slow in July as the total collected in the parish was $40,954,187, down $342,646 or 0.8% from the same period in 2018, according to statistics released by the St. Landry Parish School Board Sales Tax Division.
However, a note with the release of the sales tax statistics stated a major retailer in the parish has changed its reporting system and is sorting out the differences.
The parish sales and use tax total includes collections for the parish government, School Board, solid waste, law enforcement, special tax districts and municipalities. The total does not include state collections.
In a July to July comparison, total parish sales tax collections were down 7.9%. In July, collections totaled $5,892,715, down $503,533 from the July 2018 collections.
The July collections were down 3.9% from June when they were $6,130,613 for the parish’s 18 sales-tax-collecting entities.
In Eunice, sales tax collections through July totaled $3,140,122, down 5% percent from the $3,306,566 collected in the same period in 2018.
In Opelousas, the seven-month collections totaled $5,779,712, down 1.2% from the same period in 2018.
In St. Landry Parish Road District 1, which collects a 2 percent sales tax in unincorporated areas of the parish to fund the Smooth Ride Home program, the seven-month total was $3,906,493, down 3.2% or $128,458 from the same period in 2018.
In July to July 2018 comparisons:
— Eunice sales tax collections of $429,675 were down 7.6% from July 2018.
— Opelousas sales tax collections of $837,976 were down 8% from July 2018.
— Road District 1 sales tax collections of $568,576 were down 16.5% from July 2018.
— Total St. Landry Parish sales collections of $5,892,715, down 7.9% from July 2018.
In July to June comparisons:
— Eunice sales tax collections were down 1.6% from the June total of $436,540.
— Opelousas sales tax collections were up 5.9% from the June total of $790,993.
— Road District 1 sales tax collections were down 4.2% from the June total of $593,263.
— Total St. Landry Parish sales tax collections were down 3.9% from the June total of $6,396,248.
The local sales tax rates in Eunice are 2.2% city and 3.55% parish.
Local sales tax rates in unincorporated St. Landry Parish are 5.55% parish tax rates that includes the 2 percent Smooth Ride Home Program tax.
The sales tax numbers include a use tax, which is paid on items used, stored or consumed. The sales tax is collected on a transaction.