Hotel, meal collections increase in July

TAX COLLECTIONS from Rhode Island restaurants rose 7.5 percent in July compared with the same month a year earlier, while hotel collections increased 2.8 percent, according to the R.I. Department of Revenue. / COURTESY COOK & BROWN PUBLIC HOUSE
TAX COLLECTIONS from Rhode Island restaurants rose 7.5 percent in July compared with the same month a year earlier, while hotel collections increased 2.8 percent, according to the R.I. Department of Revenue. / COURTESY COOK & BROWN PUBLIC HOUSE

PROVIDENCE – July’s hotel, meal and beverage tax collections increased over June’s numbers, and also bested the numbers posted in July 2013, according to information released by the R.I. Department of Revenue.
The department’s fiscal 2015 Local 1 percent Report is issued on a monthly basis for hotel, beverage and meal tax collections.
In July, hotel tax collections jumped 28.2 percent to $428,292, compared with June’s collections of $334,022. In the year-over-year period, collections rose 2.8 percent.
“The sharp increase in local hotel tax collections between July and June are to be expected as July is one of the peak months of Rhode Island’s tourist season,” Director of Revenue Rosemary Booth Gallogly said in a press release.
In July, meal and beverage tax collections increased 11.5 percent to $2.4 million, compared with June’s collections of $2.2 million. Comparing July 2013 to July 2014, collections in that category increased 7.5 percent.
“Local meal and beverage tax collections increased between July and June as is to be expected but the real news is the strong growth in year-over-year collections. An increase of more than 7 percent is impressive and hopefully can be sustained over the longer term even if not at such lofty levels,” Gallogly said.
In the hotel category, five communities with the largest percentage increase from June to July were Narragansett at 119.7 percent; Bristol, 115 percent; Westerly, 97.7 percent; Charlestown, 97.1 percent; and New Shoreham, 95.6 percent.
Five communities with the largest percentage decrease were East Greenwich and Scituate (-100 percent); Glocester, -73.2 percent; North Smithfield, -9.7 percent; and Little Compton, -7.4 percent.
Year-over-year, Jamestown had the highest percentage increase in hotel tax collections at 34.8 percent, followed by Woonsocket, 26.9 percent; and Richmond, 26 percent.
In meal and beverage tax collections from June to July, New Shoreham topped the list with a 135.9 percent increase, followed by Narragansett, 52.6 percent; Jamestown, 48.7 percent; Bristol, 37.2 percent and Westerly, 36.3 percent. Foster had the largest percentage decrease at 12.8 percent, followed by North Kingstown, 11.5 percent; and Pawtucket, 11.3 percent.
Year-over-year, Charlestown had the largest percentage increase in meal and beverage tax collections at 33 percent, followed by Little Compton, 19.5 percent; and Porstmouth, 19.1 percent.
Rhode Island’s meal and beverage tax requires all restaurants in the state to charge a 1 percent local tax on the sale of all meals and beverages. Similarly, the local hotel tax requires hotels to charge a 1 percent tax on all transactions. Tax collections represent a fair gauge of restaurant and hotel activity in Rhode Island during a given period.

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