Texas sales tax collections up $1.5 billion
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas Comptroller Susan Combs says the state collected $24.1 billion in sales tax revenue in the 2012 fiscal year, about $1.5 billion more than she predicted last December.
The figures released Wednesday represent collections through Aug. 31 and were a 12.6 percent increase over 2011.
Combs, a Republican, says the revenue increase was driven by robust collections from the oil and gas industry and a strong performance in retail markets.
Democratic State Rep. Mike Villareal of San Antonio says the added revenue should be used in 2013 to restore some budget cuts lawmakers made in 2011, most notably in public education.
