Sales taxes are up in county, cities of Orange, Vidor

Sales tax returns for March showed increases for Orange County and the cities of Orange, West Orange, and Vidor. However, payments to Bridge City and Pinehurst were down compared to 2022.

The Texas Comptroller's Office recently sent the payments to the entities for their share of sales taxes in March. The U.S. Department of Commerce reports the inflation rate for March 2023 was 5 percent.

Orange showed the biggest increases with a jump of 38.8 percent in the March returns compared to 2023, along with a 16.58 percent increase for year-to-date payments. The city has a 1.5 percent sales tax rate and received $936,400 for March this year and had $674,606 for March last year. The city now has $3.735 million for the first five months of the year, compared to $3.2 million during the same time last year.

Orange County has a 0.5 percent sales tax and received $735,487 for March this year, an 8.31 percent increase from March 2022. The county now has $3.23 million for the year so far, compared to $3 million at the same time last year, an increase of 7.46 percent.

Vidor collected $389,899 for March, a 14.23 percent increase from $341,325 for March last year. The city has a 1.5 percent sales tax and now has $1.53 million this year, compared to $1.48 million last year, an increase of 8.9 percent.

West Orange's tax rate is 1.25 percent with the city collecting $129,390 for March, up 8.31 percent from $119,452 for March 2022. The city now has a year-to-date total of $616,302, a 5.83 percent increase from $582,314 at the same time last year.

Bridge City dropped down 5.51 percent for March this year compared to March 2022, but is down only slightly for the year to date. The city has a 1.5 percent sales tax and collected $221,353 for March, down from $234,265 last year. So far this year, the city has collected $960,233, down less than 1 percent from the $969,924 collected at the same time last year.

Pinehurst had a nearly 15 percent drop in the sales taxes for the month. The city received $53,588 for March this year, with $63,024 received for March last year. However, the city is down only slightly for the year to date, with a total of $275,214 so far this year, a drop of only 2.1 percent from the $281,137 collected last year. The city also has a 1.5 percent sales tax.

Orange County Emergency Services District No. 3 is the only special district in the county with a sales tax. It was approved by voters several years ago. The district is for the Little Cypress Fire and Rescue Department. The March sales tax payment was $35,033, compared to $31,490 for March last year. The district, which has a 1.5 percent sales tax, has collected $146,169 for the year so far, compared to $117,253 for the same period last year.