Providence, R.I. -- The Rhode Island Department of Revenue today released its FY 2018 Cash Collections Report for December 2017 today. The Cash Collections Report, which is issued on a monthly basis, compares current fiscal year cash collections by revenue item on a fiscal year-to-date and monthly basis to prior fiscal year cash collections by revenue item. The cash collections report makes no adjustments for the timeliness of the receipt of revenues and provides readers with insight into the state's cash flow over the course of the fiscal year.
Rhode Island Department of Revenue Director Mark A. Furcolo noted: "FY 2018 total general revenue cash collections through December are up 7.2 percent, or $125.4 million more than was received last fiscal year through December of 2016. Included in the FY 2018 year-to-date through December figure are $4.5 million of tax and interest payments received from the 2017 Tax Amnesty Program. The sizeable increase in general revenue cash collections on a fiscal year-to-date basis is attributable to estate and transfer tax payments being $68.8 million more in FY 2018, personal income tax cash collections $47.0 million ahead of FY 2017, and sales and use tax receipts running $22.4 million higher in FY 2018.
The growth rate for FY 2018 through December of 7.2 percent (7.0 percent when adjusting for the inflow of tax and interest payments from the 2017 Tax Amnesty Program) is well above the 1.4 percent growth rate recorded in the FY 2017 through December period last year."
Notable cash collections items on a December fiscal year-to-date basis included: • Total personal income tax cash collections of approximately $676.3 million, up $47.0 million or 7.5 percent year-to-date. o Personal income tax withholding payments up $23.6 million or 4.3 percent year-to-date, in spite of the fact that FY 2017 year-to-date through December personal income tax withholding payments included the receipt of large deposit(s) of $3.3 million. o Personal income tax refunds and adjustments were $8.2 million, or 16.9 percent, less than in FY 2017 year-to-date through December. Over 40 percent of the favorable performance in refunds and adjustments is attributable to transfers of receipts from business corporation tax to correct for prior year filing errors by taxpayers. o Personal income tax final payments were down $2.1 million through December of FY 2018, or 6.4 percent. FY 2018 year-to-date personal income tax final payments cash collections include $2.8 million in tax and interest payments from the 2017 Tax Amnesty program. o FY 2018 through December personal income tax estimated payments cash collections were $17.3 million more than in FY 2017 through December, a variance of 18.9 percent. It may be that personal income tax filers shifted estimated payments that were going to be made in January 2018 to December 2017 in response to the passage of the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. • Year-to-date FY 2018 through December sales and use tax cash collections are up $22.4 million in comparison to FY 2017 through December with Net Taxation receipts $21.3 million more, or 4.7 percent, Registry Receipts $305,631 more, or 0.6 percent, and Providence Place Mall sales tax collections $489,461, or 7.3 percent, more than the prior year. FY 2018 through December Net Taxation receipts include $727,313 of tax and interest payments realized from the 2017 Tax Amnesty Program. • FY 2018 all other general revenue sources cash collections through November are up $53.8 million relative to last fiscal year at this time. This increase reflects higher estate and transfer tax cash collections of $68.8 million offset by lower insurance company gross premiums tax cash collections of $15.5 million and lower business corporation tax cash collections of $7.0 million. Included in the FY 2018 year-to-date through December figure are $828,284 of tax and interest payments received from the 2017 Tax Amnesty Program. • Fiscal year-to-date through December 2017 departmental receipts cash collections were $547,831, or 0.2 percent, more than in FY 2017 through December. Included in the FY 2018 year-to-date through December figure are $41,961 of tax and interest payments received from the 2017 Tax Amnesty Program. • The lottery transfer in FY 2018 year-to-date is $1.7 million more than in FY 2017 through December, a variance of 1.1 percent. This increase is attributable in large part to an increase of $517,813 in traditional lottery games (i.e., scratch tickets, Powerball, etc.) and an increase of $581,810 in casino gaming activity at Twin River and Newport Grand. * FY 2018 YTD figures include $4.5 million in tax and interest payments received from the 2017 Tax Amnesty. Net of these payments, the growth rate is 7.0 percent.
Notable month of December cash collections items included: • Increased December 2017 personal income tax cash collections of $29.8 million, 23.3 percent above December 2016. o The increase in December 2017 personal income tax cash collections was driven in large part by an increase in estimated payments of $19.5 million perhaps reflecting a shift in January 2018 estimated payments to December 2017 as a result of the federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. o An increase in withholding payments of $5.9 million from the amount received in December 2016. o A decrease in refunds and adjustments payments of $2.1 million and an increase in final payments of $2.3 million which includes $2.8 million in tax and interest payments from the 2017 Tax Amnesty program. • Increased December 2017 sales and use tax cash collections of $4.7 million or 6.2 percent from December 2016 with Net Taxation cash collections $4.8 million more. Included in this amount is $727,313 of tax and interest payments generated by the 2017 Tax Amnesty. • Higher financial institutions tax cash collections in December 2017 of $2.0 million, a 184.8 percent increase. • The lottery transfer for December 2017 was $898,702 less than in December 2016, a variance of 3.1 percent. • December 2017 business corporation tax cash collections were $1.1 million more than in December 2016, a variance of 9.3 percent. The December 2017 figure includes $517,563 in tax and interest payments from the 2017 Tax Amnesty program.
The full cash collections report can be found on the Department of Revenue's web site, www.dor.ri,gov, under the Revenue Analysis directory or at this link: http://www.dor.ri.gov/revenue-analysis/2018.php under the State Reports tab.
Questions or comments on the report should be directed to Paul Grimaldi, Chief of Information and Public Relations by e-mail at paul.grimaldi@revenue.ri.gov or by phone at (401) 574-8766.