General Fund revenue exceeds projections by $304.3M in fiscal year
Net revenue to Puerto Rico’s General Fund was more than $11.04 billion in the first 10 months of the fiscal year, surpassing projections by $304.3 million, or 2.8%, the Puerto Rico Treasury Department reported.
Treasury Secretary Ángel L. Pantoja-Rodríguez said revenue from individual income tax, sales and use tax (IVU, in Spanish), cigarette sales and rum taxes contributed most to the gains recorded from July through April.
“The accumulated revenues between July and April of this fiscal year exceeded the period’s projections by $304.3 million,” he said, adding that individual income tax alone generated $2.6 billion, or $213.8 million more than projected.
Compared to the same period last fiscal year, individual income tax collections rose by $145.6 million.
IVU collections totaled $2.44 billion over the 10-month period, exceeding the projection of $2.29 billion by $145.7 million and marking an $88.9 million year-over-year increase.
Other categories posting gains included cigarette taxes, up $17.3 million from last year to $71.8 million, and rum excise taxes, which rose $10 million to $184.2 million — surpassing projections by $12.9 million.
Motor vehicle license collections increased to $108.6 million, compared with $103.1 million during the same period last year.
Despite the positive overall results, some categories reported declines. Corporate income tax revenue decreased from nearly $2.54 billion to slightly more than $2.42 billion, and receipts from Act 154 companies — a transfer tax on multinational firms operating in Puerto Rico — fell from $111.8 million to $90.3 million. Revenues from alcoholic beverages declined slightly, from $233 million to $232 million, and motor vehicle sales dropped from $591.7 million to $571.7 million.
In April alone, General Fund collections totaled $1.74 billion — $43.6 million short of projections — but saw gains in individual income tax, foreign company tax under Act 154 and rum tax.
Individual income tax for the month of April rose to $578.4 million, up $33.1 million compared with the $545.3 million collected in April last year, and $62.4 million above the projection of $516 million.
Receipts from Act 154 companies in April reached $12.1 million, compared with $11.3 million in the same month last year. Rum tax collections in April increased to $26.7 million, from $18.6 million the prior year.
April saw declines in corporate tax, non-resident withholding tax, IVU and alcoholic beverage tax collections compared with April last year.
For the fiscal year through March, revenue exceeded the fiscal plan projection of $8.95 billion by $347.9 million, or 3.9%, the Treasury Department reported.
In the first nine months of the fiscal year, the categories showing increases included individual income tax, non-resident withholding tax, IVU, alcoholic beverages, cigarette sales and rum taxes.
Collections for March alone totaled $1.08 billion, an increase of $25.8 million compared with the $1.05 billion recorded in March last year.
