PROVIDENCE – The collection of the local 1% meal and beverage tax in Rhode Island in March totaled $2.2 million, an 11.6% increase over March 2018, according to a R.I. Department of Revenue report Wednesday.
The largest collection of any municipality in the state of the 1% tax was in Providence, with a total of $539,982, a 14.6% increase year over year. Providence also had the largest nominal increase year over year, with collections rising $68,748 from March 2018 collections.
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The second-largest collection in the state was in Warwick, where $253,645 was collected in March.
The largest year-over-year nominal decline in collections of the tax in Rhode Island in March was in Cumberland, where collections declined $26,075 to $28,068.
Collections declined in nine Rhode Island municipalities year over year in March and increased in 30 municipalities.
Fiscal year to date in March, collection of the 1% meal and beverage tax totaled $20.3 million, a 4.8% decline from fiscal year-to-date collections in March 2018. The nominal decline in collections for that time period totaled $1 million. Of that decline, $535,923 was attributable to a transfer to sales tax from the tax collection in Providence due to prior period audits.
Excluding the transfer, Providence still had the largest nominal decline in fiscal year-to-date collections in March, falling $211,766 to a total of $3.9 million. The decline in collections in Warwick was not far behind, falling $202,113 to a total of $2.1 million.
Providence accounted for the most collection of any municipality in the state fiscal year to date. The largest nominal increase in collections fiscal year to date in March was in Westerly, where revenue grew $52,343 to $759,997. Tiverton, which saw the opening of the Twin River Tiverton Casino Hotel last fall, experienced a 16.7%, or $30,110, collection increase to $210,626.
Fiscal year-to-date collections declined in 21 of 39 municipalities in March.
Chris Bergenheim is the PBN web editor. You may reach him at Bergenheim@PBN.com.
