Cookeville April Sales Tax Collection Down 14.5%

Cookeville sales tax collection for April was down 14.5 percent over the same time last year.

City Manager James Mills said he was expecting the number to be at least 50 percent.

“We were pleased,” Mills said. “There’s still a reduction, there’s still a loss with about $169,000 over last year, but it’s much better than we projected it to be.”

Mills said he’s expecting numbers to be flat over the summer. He said since Cookeville is a regional hub with big box stores, sales tax collections did not fall as much as they could have.

“It’s a lot like what happened in 2008,” Mills said. “We were affected, but not nearly as bad as a lot of the state was, or the country. We’re fortunate where we live, and we’re pleased with the numbers we got on sales tax. Even the state shared sales tax was not nearly as bad as projected.”

Mills said the gas tax was less than expected, but hopes it will return to normal. He said the revenue goes to the street aid funds.