PROVIDENCE – Collection of the 1 percent meal and beverage tax in October totaled $2.3 million, a 20 percent increase year over year, according to the R.I. Department of Revenue Thursday.
Providence experienced the largest nominal increase year over year, increasing $97,143 to $529,817 in October. Westerly experienced the largest nominal decrease year over year, declining $6,560 to $60,869. Revenue from the tax is returned to the municipality in which it was collected.
To date in fiscal 2018, collections of the 1 percent meal and beverage tax totaled $11.1 million, a 12.5 percent increase year over year from the same fiscal 2017 period. Providence experienced a 20.7 percent increase in tax collections to $2.1 million, while Newport saw a 15.3 percent increase to $1.3 million. Tax collected in Warwick totaled $1.1 million through October, a 12.5 percent increase.