By Rupert Howell

The City of Batesville’s reimbursement for its share of sales taxes paid during the latest reporting period shows a four percent increase over the same month last year according to figures released by the Mississippi State Tax Commission.

The city’s share, approximately 18 percent, of total sales tax collected within the city limits during January was $286,835.83. Year-to-date figures which began July 1, 2008, show that overall collections are down four percent totaling $2,664,406.

March collections of the Batesville Tourism and Economic Development Tax showed a 12 percent decrease for that month totaling $68,119.

Year-to-date figures in that category show a two percent increase with the city’s collections since July 1 totaling $680,974.

While sales tax is used for general operations of city government, the Tourism tax is used to pay notes on the Batesville Civic Center and to provide infrastructure near I-55.

Other Panola County municipalities received as their share of sales tax collections the following amount with the percentage of increase or decrease as follows:  Como, $16,623, -10%; Courtland, $1,238, -25%; Crowder, $1,821, +47; Pope, $1,970, -1%; and Sardis, $29,528, +28%.

Other municipalities in the local trade area received as their share sales tax collected in the following amounts with percentages of increase or decrease: Charleston, $30,483, +12%; Lambert, $2,730, -7%; Marks, $21,033, -3%; Oakland, $3,920, +10%; Water Valley, $36,634, +13%.

Other neighboring municipalities received the following with percentage of increase/decrease over last year as: Clarksdale, $236,663, +1%; Grenada, $307,298, +1%; Oxford, $462,076, +6%; Senatobia, $156,018, +2%.

The state showed an overall three percent increase for the reporting period compared to the same period last year totaling $30,313,053 paid back to municipalities and a year-to-date of $291,014,759, a decrease of one percent collected and paid to local governments.