Kemp: May Net Tax Revenues Up 9.1%; Adjusted YTD Up 0.2%

ATLANTA – The State of Georgia’s net tax collections in May totaled $2.69 billion, for an increase of $224 million, or 9.1%, compared to FY 2024, when net tax collections approached $2.47 billion for the month. As a result of the hurricane-related tax filing deadline extension granted by Governor Kemp to file tax year 2024 income tax returns, a large number of filers took advantage of the extension by remitting payments at the May 1 deadline, leading to a significant portion of both individual and corporate return payments being captured in the May reporting cycle.

Year-to-date, net tax revenue totaled $30.46 billion, for an increase of $536.2 million that was driven largely by the collection of the state’s motor fuel excise tax, which was suspended by Executive Order for a period of two and a half months during FY 2024.  Adjusting for the year-over-year motor fuel tax changes, year-to-date net tax revenue collections for the period ending May 31 were up $64.8 million, or 0.2%.

The changes within the following tax categories help to further explain May’s overall net tax revenue increase:
 
Individual Income Tax: Individual Income Tax collections totaled nearly $1.33 billion, for an increase of $102.3 million, or 8.3%, compared to last year when Individual Tax collections totaled $1.23 billion.

The following notable components within Individual Income Tax combine for the net increase:

• Individual Income Tax refunds issued (net of voided checks) increased $57.9 million or 38.7 percent
• Individual Withholding payments declined by $38.1 million, or 3.2 percent, from the previous fiscal year
• Individual Income Tax Return payments were up $162.5 million, or 142.9 percent, over last year
• All other Individual Tax categories, including Estimated payments, were up a combined $35.8 million

Sales and Use Tax: Gross Sales and Use Tax collections totaled roughly $1.6 billion in May, for an increase of $74.2 million, or 4.9%, compared to FY 2024.  Net Sales and Use Tax increased by $37.5 million, or 5%, compared to last year, when net sales tax totaled $746 million. The adjusted Sales Tax distribution to local governments totaled $809.4 million, for an increase of $41.7 million, or 5.4%, while Sales Tax refunds decreased by $4.9 million compared to the previous fiscal year.

Corporate Income Tax: Corporate Income Tax collections for the month of May totaled $121.2 million, which was an increase of $50.2 million, or 70.8%, compared to last year’s total of $70.9 million.

The following notable components within Corporate Income Tax make up the net increase:

• Corporate Income Tax refunds issued (net of voids) declined roughly $31.1 million, or 75.1%
• Corporate Income Tax Return payments increased by $30.7 million, or 98.5%, over May 2024
• All other Corporate Tax types, including Corporate Estimated payments, were down a combined $11.6 million 

Motor Fuel Taxes: Motor Fuel Tax collections increased by $5 million, or 2.6%, compared to FY 2024.

Motor Vehicle - Tag & Title Fees:  Motor Vehicle Tag & Title Fees increased by $1.4 million, or 4.2%, for the month, while Title Ad Valorem Tax (TAVT) collections increased by $6.3 million, or 8.3%, over May 2024.