By: ELIZABETH WEST
Managing Editor
This past June was a pretty good month for sales tax collections throughout the parish, with only two municipalities or taxing bodies collecting less sales taxes than they did in June of 2016.
Overall, the parish collected $229,290.09, or 16.38 percent more in sales taxes during June 2017 than it did in June 2016.
The taxing body that experienced the highest increase in sales tax comparisons by percentage for June was the Village of Chataignier, which saw a 372 pct. increase in sales tax collections this past June. Its collections for June 2016 were $753.24, while in June of 2017 the village brought in $3,555.28 in sales taxes.
According to Michael Vellion with the Tax Commission’s Office, explained the increase by stating, “If a large purchase like a car was made by someone in Chataignier, that would increase the amount of sales tax taken in, because they are a small municipality that doesn’t usually collect a lot of sales taxes.”
Two other taxing bodies that fared well when it came to sales tax collections for June 2017 are the Evangeline Parish Police Jury and the Evangeline Parish School Board.
The police jury collected $96,665.65 more in June 2017 than it did in June 2016, while the EPSB’s collections were $84,811.44 more than in June 2016.
The uptick in collections according to Veillon had to do with “audits on the oil industry,” and “Pine Prairie Energy adding caverns” to its facility in Eastin.
It is however unknown whether the trend of increased sales tax collections will continue.
Veillon said, “We will have to just watch it over the next two to three months to see if this is something that we will continue to see happening in the parish.”