New Jersey reports higher revenue collections

(The Center Square) – New Jersey’s revenues continue to rise, as collections for “major taxes” exceeded $5.4 billion in December, an increase of 25.8%, or $1.1 billion, from a year earlier, the state Department of the Treasury said.

This fiscal year, total collections have exceeded $18.1 billion, up 23.5%, or $3.4 billion, from the same period last year.

State officials said the increase was largely driven by the Pass-Through Business Alternative Income Tax (PTBAIT). The program, implemented in 2020, aims to lessen the impact of the federal State and Local Taxes (SALT) cap on deductions, the Department of the Treasury said.

December’s PTBAIT collections of more than $1.5 billion were up 61.2%, or $594.9 million, from last December. Collections so far this fiscal year exceed $1.7 billion, up 79.2%, or $792.3 million, over the same period last year.

Sales and use tax collections, which make up the largest General Fund revenue source, hit $927.6 million in December, increasing 11.2%, or $93.6 million. So far this fiscal year, sales and use tax collections exceeded $4.9 billion, up 12%, or $532.8 million, over last year.

“Consumer behavior continues to exceed pre-pandemic levels, and recently elevated price inflation is also contributing to the strong rate of collections growth,” the Department of the Treasury said in a news release.

Corporation Business Tax (CBT) collections, the second-largest General Fund revenue source, hit $934.5 million in December, increasing 28.2%, or $205.3 million, over last December. So far this fiscal year, CBT collections are more than $2.3 billion, up 29.1%, or $520.6 million, from the same timeframe a year ago.

In December, Gross Income Tax (GIT) collections surpassed $1.6 billion, an increase of 8%, or $118.9 million, over last year. So far this fiscal year, GIT collections topped $6.9 billion, up 19.9%, or more than $1.1 billion, over a year ago.