Catoosa County revenue on 'weak' climb

RINGGOLD, Ga. -- Sales tax revenue in Catoosa County is rising, but it still has a ways to go, according to a county official.

On Tuesday morning, financial officer Carl Henson told county commissioners that January's returns, which represent December sales, are about $30,000 more than last January's, marking the second month in a row the county has brought in more than the previous year.

"We're hoping that's a trend, but it's awfully weak," Mr. Henson said after the meeting.

Overall, the county has brought in $58,000 more than it had budgeted via the local option sales tax, but that is almost $100,000 behind last year's local option sales tax revenue for the four-month-old fiscal year, according to documents.

That the county could be behind on revenue but have breathing room in its budget is a testament to the work that department heads and commissioners have done scaling back, according to Commissioner Dewayne Hill.

"The cuts we had made back last year are starting to show up," Mr. Hill said.

A rough October 2009 return caused by slumping September sales is the reason for this year's revenue gap, Mr. Henson said. The county was $126,000 behind after October and dipped $44,000 deeper into the red in November before slowing inching upward the last two months.

In the 2010-11 fiscal year, which began Oct. 1, the county brought in roughly $450,000 to $536,000 each month via the local option sales tax, Mr. Henson said.

In the 2008-09 fiscal year, May was the only month when more money came in than it did in the prior year, he said.

"We hope the trend is to recover," Mr. Henson told commissioners during his report.