County seeing larger percentage of sales tax

EPHRATA — Grant County revenue is about the same compared to last year.

While the economy is affecting some sections of the county’s revenues, it is leaving others untouched, according to Grant County Treasurer Darryl Pheasant.

Overall, sales tax coming into the county is down about 3.5 percent, but the county is receiving about $30,000 more than last year at this time. Pheasant attributed the raise in sales tax to a change in how some sales tax is distributed. Instead of distributing it by where the item is purchased, the state started to distribute it by where the people live.

“The county portion has increased, but the overall county (sales tax) has decreased, which was almost 3.5 percent less overall for the county. So if the county, because of sales tax streamlining, is getting a little more than last year that means that some of the cities are getting a little less than last year,” Pheasant said.

If the law wasn’t in affect, the county would likely be behind last year’s revenues, he said.

The sales tax numbers look encouraging, because it looks like the county will achieve its budget goals, he said. While the county hasn’t reached a quarter of its goal, the beginning of the year is usually the slowest time for Grant County.

“Going into this year it was quite an unknown. There was still a lot of doom and gloom,” he said. “We’re looking forward to changes and this gets moving and people have more confidence to get back to spending again,” he said

While revenues for the county are holding steady, the amount of interest the county makes on investments dropped, Pheasant said. The county invests money in banks and a state investment pool, with interest going into the county’s general fund. As of February, the county is looking to receive about $70,000 less than last year.

“The interest rates (are) going down, because of all the fed moves and treasury rates being so low because of the national problems. Unfortunately the state pool, run by the state treasurer, doesn’t get very many good investments to invest in.”

The county is investing about a third of its money into the state’s investment pool. The amount rose this year due to changes in the law requiring banks to have collateral for all of the public money invested in them.

“Most banks have stopped receiving new (investments) and some have asked to have them all cleared out,” he said. “Unfortunately for us, and the county treasurers around the state, that means we have less selection of where to put our money.”