According to the Mississippi Department of Revenue, Brookhaven’s sales tax diversion for December 2015 was $444,246.74. The number is down 5.03 percent from $467,770.47 in December 2014.

Despite the decrease from last year’s December number, the total sales tax Brookhaven received since July 1 to date has increased from the last year. The DOR sales tax year starts in July 1. In 2015, from July 1 to December, Brookhaven received $2,794,328.38, which is a 2.19 increase from 2014’s comparable total of 2,734,391. Essentially, Brookhaven has received $60,000 more than it did this time last year.

Sales tax has a three-month cycle. Month one is when the tax is collected by the retailer, month two is when the tax is reported/paid to the DOR by the retailer and month three is when the sales tax diversion is paid by the DOR to cities. This means the number labeled December 2015 reflects the sales tax collected in November of that year, which the city actually receives a check for in January 2016.