By Rupert Howell

The City of Batesville’s share of sales tax collected during the month of April was five percent above last year and the most ever collected during any April according to figures from the State Tax Commission.
The City received $333,018 or approximately 18% of the total seven percent collected and has received $3,526,083 during the state’s fiscal year, a four percent increase over the previous year.

Batesville received $95,770 for the month of May through its Tourism and Economic Development Tax, a three percent tax of lodging and restaurants, an increase of five percent over May of 2011. Batesville has received $985,649 during the state’s fiscal year and with one month remaining to be reported, will go over the $1 million in yearly collections for the first time.

Other Panola County municipalities received the following amounts with the percentage of increase (+) or decrease or decrease (-) from last April as follows: Como, $14,728, +21; Courtland, $3,149, +178; Crenshaw, $6,280, +19; Crowder, $2,221, +39; Pope, $4,576, +12; and Sardis $28,785, +9.

The City of Sardis received $9,120 from their tourism tax, an 11% increase over last  May. Como’s tourism tax decreased 22% bringing in $4,345.

Other nearby municipalities received sales tax disbursements from April as follows: Charleston, $29,291, +1; Clarksdale, $245,317, +8; Grenada, $329,763, unchanged; Lambert, $3,419, +23; Marks, $20,671, +4; Oakland, $7,059,+19; Oxford, $581,160, +8; Senatobia, $156,248, +3; Sledge, $1,780, +21: Taylor, $2,710, +22 and Water Valley, $41,971, +4.

The state’s monthly and year-to-date sales tax collections are both three percent above last year.