While it is clear the Mohawk Valley economy has struggled as a result of the recession, state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli feels things could have been worse.
In a report released this week, DiNapoli said counties statewide suffered one of the sharpest declines in sales tax collections on record.
The overall sales tax revenues from 2008 to 2009 dropped a collective 5.9 percent, according to the report.
The Mohawk Valley sales tax figures, however, saw the smallest downturn at 2.5 percent. The steepest drop, at 10.3 percent, came in Westchester county, DiNapoli said.
Herkimer County dropped over $875,000, or 3.3 percent. The dip followed an over $1.1 million, or 4.5 percent, increase between 2007 and 2008.
Herkimer County officials have said the Mohawk Valley’s sales tax figures didn’t drop as much as more affluent counties for one reason: people in the valley mainly purchase necessities, which are made regardless of economic climate, while more wealthy counties rely more heavily on luxury purchases, being the first to go during tough times.
But valley governments, with tight budgets prior to the downturn, struggled with lower sales tax revenues. And the region has continued to show signs of a prolonged difficult financial climate.
Unemployment figures in the region ranged between 7 percent to 10 percent, according to Labor Department figures from the end of 2009.
DiNapoli described his sales tax figures as “sobering.”
“This is yet another sign that the Great Recession is having a continuing impact on our communities across New York,” he released in a statement.
Sales tax collection figures from 2007-09, according to Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli:
Herkimer County:
• $25,383,101 in 2007
• $26,523,140 in 2008
• A $1,140,039, or 4.5 percent, increase in 2007-08
• $25,646,438 in 2009
• An $876,702, or 3.3 percent, decrease in 2008-09.
Oneida County:
• $120,669,306 in 2007
• $114,415,678 in 2008
• A $6,253,628, or 5.2 percent, decrease in 2007-08
• $114,699,784 in 2009
• A $284,106, or 0.2 percent increase in 2008-09.
Fulton County:
• $18,003,347 in 2007
• $17,699,300 in 2008
• A $304,047, or 1.7 percent, decrease in 2007-08
• $16,713,704 in 2009
• A $985,596, or 5.6 percent, decrease in 2008-09
Montgomery County:
• $24,319,981 in 2007
• $25,528,488 in 2008
• An 1,208,507, or 5 percent, increase in 2007-08
• $23,101,223 in 2009
• A $2,427,265, or 9.5 percent, decrease in 2008-09.
Herkimer, N.Y. —
