The New Jersey Treasury Department reported this week that October revenue collections for major state taxes totaled $2.973 billion, up $202.4 million or 7.3% above last October.
Year-to-date, total collections of $11.370 billion are up $1.237 billion since Fiscal Year 2023 began on July 1. This represents a 12.2% increase compared to the same four months in FY22.
Despite this solid growth in tax revenues, the department said it expects a “moderation in collections growth” for the rest of FY23.
Income Tax
October collections for the Gross Income Tax (GIT), which are dedicated to the Property Tax Relief Fund, totaled $1.299 billion, up $135.2 million or 11.6% above last October. Fiscal year-to-date collections of $4.674 billion are up $442.9 million, or 10.5%.
Sales Tax
The Sales and Use Tax, the largest General Fund revenue source, totaled $1.265 billion, an increase of $64.8 million or 5.4% above last October. Due to a one-month lag in the reporting and payment of Sales Tax, October revenue reflects consumer activity in September.
October collections also reflect the partial impact of the State’s Back-To-School Sales Tax Holiday, which occurred from Aug. 27 through Sept. 5, although precise data on the impact of the tax holiday are not available. Fiscal year-to-date collections of $3.370 billion are up $263.0 million, or 8.5%.
Corporation Business Tax
The Corporation Business Tax (CBT), the second largest General Fund revenue source, totaled $112.8 million in October, a decrease of $28.9 million, or 20.4% below last October. October collections are typically among the smaller CBT months each year. Fiscal year-to-date collections of $1.450 billion are up $73.6 million, or 5.3%.
PTBAIT revenues totaled $9.5 million in October, an increase of $107.8 million from last October’s net negative collections balance, mostly due to the timing of refunds. Last year, most refunds associated with extended returns were issued in October, but this year most refunds are expected to be issued in November.
Gas Tax
Petroleum Products Gross Receipts Tax (PPGRT) revenues of $122.8 million were $28.1 million, or 18.6% lower than a year ago because of the 8.3-cent decrease in the PPGRT rate, which affected collections beginning in November 2021. The PPGRT rate decreased by an additional 1 cent effective Oct. 1, 2022. Payments received from November 2022 onward will reflect this rate decrease.
Realty Transfer Fee Tax
Realty Transfer Fee revenues of $50.8 million were $11.5 million or 18.5% below October of 2021. Monthly collections are beginning to reflect challenging housing market conditions. Median home prices have begun to decline, as have sales. Fiscal year-to-date collections of $174.3 million are essentially flat compared to the same time period in 2021.
