REVENUES ON THE RISE; AUTO, RETAIL FIRMS PROVIDE BULK OF SALES TAXES.Byline: Teresa Jimenez Daily News Staff Writer Automobile and retail businesses brought in the most sales tax sales tax, levy on the sale of goods or services, generally calculated as a percentage of the selling price, and sometimes called a purchase tax. It is usually collected in the form of an extra charge by the retailer, who remits the tax to the government. money for the city from mid-1996 to mid-1997, which continued the upward trend and spurred predictions of a better financial outlook in the coming year. The city of Santa Clarita's 1 percent share of sales tax revenue totaled $13 million from the second quarter of 1996 to the second quarter of 1997, once again showing a steady increase from previous years. ``We have seen it go up. We've seen an increase,'' said Ken Striplin of the city's finance department. ``It's a reflection of the economy and new stores, and we're projecting it will continue to go up.'' Still, changes in spending habits and the general pattern of the economy are hard to predict, said Mayor Jan Heidt, who owns her own shop, One for the Books. Though the economy has picked up, shoppers have become more discriminating dis·crim·i·nat·ing adj. 1. a. Able to recognize or draw fine distinctions; perceptive. b. Showing careful judgment or fine taste: and look for specific items, Heidt said. That approach to shopping makes the city's future sales tax revenue somewhat unpredictable, she said. ``It will probably go the same way the state does,'' Heidt said. ``But small businesses say if there's a boom going on, we haven't felt it. We keep hanging in here.'' The city's sales tax revenue is divided into six categories. The transportation category includes the sale of auto parts Auto parts are components of automobiles. They mainly are, in alphabetic order (only car specific articles or articles with car section):
The general retail category includes the sale of items at department stores This is a list of department stores. In the case of department store groups the location of the flagship store is given. This list does not include large specialist stores, which sometimes resemble department stores. , drug stores, furniture and appliance stores, newsstands and vending machines vending machine, coin-operated, automatic device for selling goods. Many vending machines are capable of making change, and some of the more sophisticated ones accept paper money or credit cards. . Department stores brought in the most sales tax in this category, though small businesses also showed strong sales, Striplin said. General retail generated $3.9 million in sales tax for Santa Clarita, or 30.3 percent of the city's sales tax revenue. The food products category includes the sale of food at restaurants, grocery stores and liquor stores, as well as equipment for processing food. Roughly $2 million, or 15.7 percent of the city's sales tax revenue, was generated for the city by these businesses. The business-to-business category includes the sale of office equipment, fuel and computers and generated $1.6 million for the city, or 12.5 percent of the total. The construction category includes the sale of hardware materials, wood and plumbing equipment, and generated $1 million for the city, or 7.9 percent of the total. The miscellaneous category includes the sale of health services health services Managed care The benefits covered under a health contract and mortuary mor·tu·ar·y n. A place, especially a funeral home, where dead bodies are kept before burial or cremation. services and generated $171,296 for the city, or 1.3 percent of the total. |
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