November 1, 2022

State Sales Tax Revenue Totaled $3.8 Billion in October

(AUSTIN) — Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar today said state sales tax revenue totaled $3.82 billion in October, 11.9 percent more than in October 2021. The majority of October sales tax revenue is based on sales made in September and remitted to the agency in October.

“Rapid growth in state sales tax revenue was again led by business spending,” Hegar said. “Double-digit growth in receipts continued from the mining, construction, manufacturing and wholesale trade sectors, fueled in part by high inflation in the prices of building materials and other business inputs.

“Receipts from restaurants and retail trade were up from a year ago at about the respective rates of inflation in prices for those sectors, possibly indicating a reduction in real per capita spending for those items as rising costs for housing and groceries claim larger shares of household budgets.

“Within retail trade, the greatest growth was in receipts from automobile and parts dealers, online shopping and general merchandise stores. Receipts from furniture and home furnishings stores, and sporting goods and hobby stores, were down from the previous year.”

Total sales tax revenue for the three months ending in October 2022 was up 14 percent compared to the same period a year ago. Sales tax is the largest source of state funding for the state budget, accounting for 56 percent of all tax collections.

Texas collected the following revenue from other major taxes:

• motor vehicle sales and rental taxes — $588 million, up 8 percent from October 2021;
• motor fuel taxes — $312 million, down 3 percent from October 2021;
• oil production tax — $544 million, up 33 percent from October 2021;
• natural gas production tax — $410 million, up 59 percent from October 2021;
• hotel occupancy tax — $66 million, up 22 percent from October 2021; and
• alcoholic beverage taxes — $150 million, up 16 percent from October 2021.

For details on all monthly collections, visit the Comptroller’s Monthly State Revenue Watch. For an extensive history of tax policy developments and fees since 1972, visit our updated Sources of Revenue publication.