The real estate transfer tax that helps fund Aspen’s affordable-housing program and the Wheeler Opera House is feeling the effects of a weak national market.
Year-to-date collections for housing through August are $3,983,982 — or 39 percent behind collections for the same period last year and 30 percent behind budget.
Year-to-date collections for the Wheeler through August are $2,136,189 — or 40 percent behind collections for the same period last year and 21 percent behind budget, according to a city of Aspen consumption tax report released this week.
Retail sales receipts posted a 1 percent gain in July compared to the same month in 2007, and year-to-date through July they are up 6.8 percent. The modest increase follows a June that was the only month this year to post a decline when compared to last year. Overall, the city has seen $326,550,150 in retail sales this year.
While tourist accommodations, restaurants and bars, sports clothing and equipment, and utilities and telecommunications have shown “healthy” growth, tax collections from general retail and specialty retail — as classified by the city — are dropping. Specialty and general retail are down 3.9 percent and 15.1 percent, respectively, year-to-date. Specialty and general retail account for slightly less than 13 percent of all retail.
“It would appear that the general retail category is being affected by similar factors which are affecting the real estate industry in general — in this case, a decline in retail sales related to construction and remodeling,” according to the report from Finance Director Don Taylor to Aspen City Council.
The city’s lodging tax was up 3.6 percent in July compared to the same month the year prior, and year-to-date collections are up 9.4 percent. The year started out well for lodging tax collections —16.9 percent above 2007 — but the year-to-date comparison has fallen every month since, or for the last six consecutive months.
hoop@aspendailynews.com
Comments
City utilities should be taxed at a fixed penny per unit
Utilities (City electric / water etc) show “healthy” growth! Outrageous that our city is collecting more tax dollars because they are charging voters more for utilities and the tax is a percentage of the sale. City utilities should be taxed at a fixed penny per unit like gasoline so the increase in price doesn’t provide a windfall to our government. France charges tax on gasoline like the city of aspen charges tax on utilities, as a percentage. Result, huge windfalls to the government of France with the recent run-up in gasoline / diesel prices. Taxing as a percentage of utility sales provides a government windfall on the shoulders of struggling locals. It’s time to change Aspen to a fixed penny for utility taxes.