There was a drop in sales tax collection for the month of September but it may not be because the economy is dipping. It could be due to the 2016 August flood.
In the past, when Vermilion Parish has had floods from storm surges or massive rains, Vermilion Parish sees in a spike in spending because of rebuilding or repairing of flooded homes.
The spike in spending also means an increase in sales tax collection. In September of 2016, the month after the 2016 flood, Vermilion Parish had surge in sales tax collections because of repairing homes that flooded throughout Vermilion Parish.
A year later, sales tax collection leveled off, but is also shows a drop.
Vermilion Parish, as a whole, had a decline of eight percent or $300,000 in sales tax collection in September.
The Vermilion Parish Tourism Department gets its funds from hotels and motels in the parish. The more people who stay in hotels, the more the tourism department will get an increase in sales tax collections.
The month after the flood, many residents, who flooded, had to go live in hotels. Sales tax collection in September of 2016 increased because of it. In 2016, the tourism department brought in $7,933 for September, which is almost double what it normally collects.
A year later, flooded residents are now home and not living in hotels. Sales tax collection is leveled off for the tourism department. This past September, sales tax collection for the tourism department was $4,500.
The big three, school board, police jury and sheriff’s office, showed a decline of eight percent.
The school board and police jury each had a decrease of $80,000 in sales tax collection from a year ago. The sheriff’s office is down $40,000.
The city of Abbeville also had a decrease of $25,000, which is also eight percent.
Here are other municipalities, showing how much sales tax was collected n September.
• Kaplan ($54,000 - decline of 3 percent);
• Gueydan ($13,700 - decline of 13 percent)
• Delcambre ($14,000 - decline of 20 percent).
Not all municipalities showed a negative number in sales tax collections.
The Village of Maurice had an increase of 10 percent from a year ago. The Village collected $61,000 or about $6,000 more than a year ago.
