September 5, 2018

Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar Announces Revenue for Fiscal 2018, Record August State Sales Tax Collection

(AUSTIN) — Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar today released totals for fiscal 2018 state revenues, in addition to announcing monthly state revenues for August.

In July, due to better than expected economic and revenue growth and an improved outlook for fiscal 2019, Hegar updated the Comptroller’s Certification Revenue Estimate (CRE) forecast from last October. This was the first time the agency has updated a CRE for a reason other than a legislative session in 30 years. Final fiscal 2018 revenues were in line with July’s revised CRE forecast:

• sales tax revenue for fiscal 2018 was $31.94 billion, up 10.5 percent over fiscal 2017.
• oil and natural gas production tax revenue was $4.82 billion, up 56.1 percent over fiscal 2017.
• general revenue-related revenue was $57.2 billion, up 9.3 percent over fiscal 2017.
• all funds tax collections were $55.6 billion, up 12 percent over fiscal 2017.
• all funds revenue was $120.2 billion, up 8.1 percent over fiscal 2017.

"As we said when we revised the CRE in July, economic growth in Texas in fiscal 2018 was strong with rising oil prices and production providing our state with a big boost,” Hegar said. “Robust severance tax revenues will result in the biggest deposits to the Economic Stabilization Fund (ESF) and State Highway Fund (SHF) since fiscal 2015.”

The ESF and SHF both receive funding from oil and natural gas severance taxes. In November, the Comptroller’s office will deposit $1.38 billion in each of those funds, up from the $734 million deposited in each fund in November 2017. Barring any legislative appropriations, the ESF will have a balance of $11.9 billion at the end of fiscal 2019, the largest ending balance in the fund's history.

Hegar also said today that state sales tax revenue totaled a record $2.87 billion in August, 15.8 percent more than in August 2017. The previous record for state sales tax revenue was $2.78 billion in November 2017.

“The strong growth in August state sales tax collections compared to a year ago is principally due to the strength of the current economic expansion, but is also due to unusually high audit refund payments in August of last year,” Hegar said. “Led by receipts from the oil- and gas-related sectors, all major economic sectors including manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, construction and services contributed significant gains.”

Total sales tax revenue for the three months ending in August 2018 is up 12.1 percent compared to the same period a year ago. Sales tax revenue is the largest source of state funding for the state budget, accounting for 57 percent of all tax collections. Motor vehicle sales and rental taxes, motor fuel taxes and oil and natural gas production taxes also are large revenue sources for the state.

Revenue from other major taxes on motor vehicle sales and rentals, motor fuel and oil and natural gas production also rose in August 2018:

• motor vehicle sales and rental taxes — $486.9 million, up 16.3 percent from August 2017;
• motor fuel taxes — $309.5 million, up 1.3 percent from August 2017; and
• oil and natural gas production taxes — $505.8 million, up 86.2 percent from August 2017.

For details on all monthly collections, visit the Comptroller's Monthly State Revenue Watch.

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