Treasury: Fiscal Year 2022 Revenue Collections Remain Strong through December
(TRENTON) - The Department of the Treasury reported today that December revenue collections for the major taxes totaled $5.411 billion, up $1.110 billion, or 25.8 percent above last December. Fiscal year-to-date, total collections of $18.111 billion are up $3.441 billion, or 23.5 percent above the same six month period last year.
More than half of the collections spike this month was driven by the Pass-Through Business Alternative Income Tax (PTBAIT), a relatively new tax program that was implemented in 2020 to help mitigate the impact of the federal cap on the deduction of State and Local Taxes (SALT). PTBAIT collections of $1.567 billion were up by $594.9 million, or 61.2 percent over last December. Total collections through the first half of the fiscal year are $1.792 billion, an increase of $792.3 million, or 79.2 percent over the same period last year. The second year of this tax program saw a significant addition of new taxpayers taking advantage of this option. However, by design, the PTBAIT* will essentially be revenue neutral to the State over time because payments received throughout the year will be largely offset by tax credit claims under the Gross Income Tax (and to a smaller degree the Corporation Business Tax) during the upcoming tax filing season.
December collections for the Gross Income Tax (GIT), which is dedicated to the Property Tax Relief Fund, totaled $1.611 billion, up $118.9 million, or 8.0 percent above last December. Fiscal year-to-date, collections of $6.968 billion are up $1.157 billion, or 19.9 percent. Overall GIT growth in the first half of Fiscal Year 2022 (FY2022) has been spurred primarily by two factors: employee withholding collections are recovering from weaker levels during the pandemic; and refund levels are down substantially, returning to normal for this time of year after taxpayer filing deadlines were delayed in 2020. However, GIT growth in the second half of FY2022 is expected to slow markedly as the impact of several tax reductions and a jump in PTBAIT credit claims lessen collections this spring.
The Sales and Use Tax, the largest General Fund revenue source, reported $927.6 million, an increase of $93.6 million, or 11.2 percent. Fiscal year-to-date, collections of $4.988 billion are up $532.8 million, or 12.0 percent higher than the same period last year. Consumer behavior continues to exceed pre-pandemic levels, and recently elevated price inflation is also contributing to the strong rate of collections growth. Due to the one-month lag in Sales Tax collections, December revenue reflects consumer activity in November.
The Corporation Business Tax (CBT), which is the second largest General Fund revenue source, reported collections of $934.5 million in December, an increase of $205.3 million, or 28.2 percent. Quarterly estimated payments accounted for most of December's CBT growth. Fiscal year-to-date through December, CBT collections of $2.313 billion are up $520.6 million, or 29.1 percent above the same period last year.
Please see the attached chart for monthly and yearly revenue collection comparisons.
* For more information on PTBAIT, please see Treasury's latest publication for a detailed analysis and primer on the relatively new revenue stream.
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