In Collaboration with Avalara, the State and Local
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In collaboration with Avalara, the State and Local Finance Initiative at the Urban Institute is conducting a study to assess the impact of the pandemic on state general sales tax revenues, states’ actions to address revenue challenges and opportunities due to the pandemic, and states’ plans related to online sales taxation. While mostly focused on sales tax revenue, we are also interested in your overall revenue streams and budget prospects. We hope you can participate in this study by completing the survey below. Please feel free to skip any question or reach out to us if you need clarifications. Please note that your responses are completely confidential. Your name will not be put in any shared documents or public research records and will not be used for marketing any goods or services to you. However, with permission we would like to reference your state for our research analysis. Please let us know if you are comfortable with us referencing your state. We thank you in advance for your response! Was your state able to gauge the impact of the pandemic on overall tax revenues? Yes No Partially Was your state’s FY 2020 revenues affected in important ways due to federal and state policy changes, including shifts in due dates for income tax returns or shifts in general sales tax remittance deadlines? Yes No Not sure Please indicate the nominal rate of growth or decline of total and excise tax revenues in FY 2020 compared to FY 2019. > 10% 5-10% 0-5% No 0-5% 5-10% > 10% Don't decrease decrease decrease change increase increase increase know Total tax revenues Excise tax revenues Is your state considering any of the following options for FY 2022? Please select all that apply. Increase personal income tax rates and / or modify personal income tax structure Increase corporate income tax rates and / or modify corporate income tax structure Increase general sales tax rates and / or modify general sales tax structure Increase excise tax rates and / or expand excise taxation Introduce taxes on wealth and the very wealthy Use rainy day funds Borrow from other state funds Issue new debt Other [please specify] How would you describe the current total and excise tax revenue picture for your state? Very Optimistic Neutral Pessimistic Very Don't optimistic pessimistic know, hard to say Total tax revenues Excise tax revenues What are the main budgetary challenges for your state? What is the current forecast for total and excise tax revenue collections for FY 2021 compared to FY 2020? > 10% 5-10% 0-5% No 0-5% 5-10% >10% Don't decrease decrease decrease change increase increase increase know Total tax revenues Excise tax revenues Is your state planning to expand its excise tax base to additional goods? This includes introducing new specific taxes on specific goods or by repealing exemptions for existing goods. No Yes [please specify] Is your state planning to enact any of the following excise tax related changes for FY 2022? Please select all that apply. Raise the gas tax Raise cigarette taxes Raise alcohol taxes Introduce taxes on recreational marijuana or raise taxes on recreational marijuana Tax vaping or increase taxes on vaping Tax soda/sugar-sweetened beverages Other [please specify] Many states have observed shifts in consumer spending during the pandemic. Are shifts in consumer behavior, related or unrelated to the pandemic, making policymakers in your state consider any policy changes related to taxation of goods vs taxation of services? Is your state collecting taxes on interstate online purchases? Yes, on direct sales and through on-line marketplaces Yes, but only on direct sales No Not sure Does your state already tax or is it planning on introducing taxes on digital goods (such as e-books, software, etc.)? Yes, had taxes in place pre-pandemic Yes, already introduced these taxes or expanded digital goods included Yes, considering introducing new taxes or expanding to additional digital goods No Not sure Does your state already tax or is it planning on introducing taxes on digital streaming services? Yes, had taxes in place pre-pandemic Yes, already introduced these taxes or expanded digital streaming services included Yes, considering introducing new taxes or expanding to additional digital streaming services No Not sure In your view, what are the projected challenges for excise tax revenues in the post-pandemic period? In your view, what are the projected opportunities for excise tax revenues in the post-pandemic period? Is there anything else you would like to add? Can we reference your state (not your name) for analysis and discussion in our public report? Yes No Please give us your contact information. This is needed for our Urban Institute IRB (Institutional Review Board) records and will not be shared outside of the Urban Institute. Any information in the survey will not be used for marketing or sales to you. First Name Last Name Title Department/agency State URL E-mail address Thank you for your participation. We appreciate your help and feedback and will be happy to share the results of our study with you. .