Sales tax bonanza in Nassau!

Final figures are in for Nassau sales tax collections from last year and revenues total $426.4 million over budgeted by former Democratic County Executive Laura Curran.

That's a 42 percent increase over the total sales taxes budgeted for 2021.

Is this huge sales tax surplus a sign of a booming economy? Or a result of soaring inflation? (Doubtful because, so far,  inflation fortunately is running nowhere near that high.)

No, this is just another example of the bad budgeting done by Curran's crack budget team, which is now the same crack budget team working for new Republican County Executive Bruce Blakeman.

The bumbling budget team never seems to get any projection right, putting out financial predictions that are off by tens of millions of dollars each year, sometimes a half billion dollars. 

But don't forget, the county's financial control board, The Nassau Interim Finance Authority, also signed off on Curran's inaccurate 2021 sales tax projection. In fact, they said Curran was in such dire budget straights that the state-appointed financial gurus refinanced $1.1 billion in county debt last year to give the former county executive a multi-million dollar election year cash cushion.

The bill comes due next year. But that's another story.

The county legislature's Office of Budget review today put out a memo today saying that the county collected a total of $1,448.4 billion last year - compared to $1,021 billion budgeted.

The 2021 in total sales taxe revenues collected is $73.4 million more than budgeted in sales taxes by Curran's people for this year, which means the county likely will end up with a sales tax surplus by the end of 2022 even if collections go somewhat south over the next ten months.

Budget Review pointed out, however, that some money has to be deducted from the  sales tax revenues: state mandated payments, sales taxes collected from hotel and alcohol sales outside of Long Beach, and local governmental assistance. And NIFA takes its operating costs out of the revenues even before they reach county coffers.

That leaves an unrestricted sales tax surplus of $362.2 million, which is supposed to go into a slush fund created by the Republican-controlled legislature called "The Special Revenue Fund."

Republicans on the legislature warned when the 2021 budget was adopted that Curran's sales tax estimates were far too low. Democratic legislators and Curran disagreed, refusing to change predictions.

So the Republicans created a fund in which to deposit all sales tax revenues collected above the budgeted number. The money is supposed to be used to pay back over due property tax refunds and legal judgments.

Curran reduced property taxes by $70 million this year. Coincidentally, sales tax collections are up $73.4 for this year. But sales tax surpluses are not supposed to be used to pay for property tax deficits.

So we'll have to watch and see where the money goes.

                                                                                     

Source: Legislative Office of Budget Review