State tax collections up for January

State tax collections in January showed an increase of almost 10 percent, according to Kansas officials.

The state showed an increase of $795.8 million in total taxes collected in January, about 9.7 percent more than January of fiscal year 2020, according to a spokesman.

It was a 12.8 percent, or $90.2 million, increase from the estimate, officials stated.

“While these numbers look promising, my administration will continue to take a close look at all tax legislation that may come to my desk and keep an eye on the fluctuation of the national economy,” Gov. Laura Kelly said in a news release. “As I’ve said before, we must continue to promote fiscally-responsible practices that will ensure our state will not only recover from the COVID-19 pandemic but continue to grow.”

Corporate income tax collections were 29.9%, or $6.4 million, more than last fiscal year with $27.7 million collected for the month. That is an 84.9%, or $12.7 million, gain, according to officials.

Individual income tax collections were $457.9 million. That is $57.9 million, or 14.5%, more than the estimate and $49.2 million, or 12.0%, more than the previous January, according to a spokesman.

The individual income tax category is slightly higher for the end of the month due to the Internal Revenue Service’s delay in processing of tax returns to Feb. 12, 2021. Due to that delay, the state cannot begin to process returns and issue refund checks until that time, a spokesman stated.

Retail sales tax collections were $3.8 million, or 1.7%, more than the same month of last fiscal year with $224.6 million collected. That is $9.6 million, or 4.5%, more than the estimate.

Wyandotte County reported a drop of 1.7 percent in retail sales tax collections for January 2021 as compared to January 2020, according to figures from the Kansas Department of Revenue.

For the July to January fiscal year to date, Wyandotte County is about 2.8 percent behind the same period in 2020, according to KDOR figures. (See https://www.ksrevenue.org/prsalesreports.html#city)

Kansas City, Kansas, is showing similar figures, about a 1.3 percent drop in retail sales tax collections for January 2021 as compared to January 2020, according to the KDOR figures, and a 2.5 percent drop for the July to January fiscal year to date.

Compensating use tax collections for the entire state were $64.6 million for January; a $9.6 million increase from the estimate. Those collections are 22.9% or $12.0 million, more than last January.

To see more data about state revenue figures, visit https://governor.kansas.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/07_January_Revenue_FY2021_02-01-2021_Final.pdf.