Spokane County April sales-tax receipts slightly under projection; year-to-date still above forecast

April sales-tax receipts for Spokane County came in a bit lower than staff had projected for that month, county budget staff told the Board of County Commissioners on May 19. "April sales tax collections came in ... it came in at 5,300,000," a staff presenter said, noting the figure reflects economic activity in February.

County budget staff said the year-to-date total remains above the forecast. The presenter said year-to-date collections are "about $250,000 over what we budgeted for 2025," and roughly half a million dollars more than the same period in 2024.

The presentation broke down receipts by sector. Construction showed notable strength year over year — nonresidential building was reported up about 11.6% and residential building up about 8.9%. A new subsector, "building equipment contractors" (HVAC, plumbing and similar trades), was up about 29% year over year, though staff cautioned the county cannot determine from the tax data whether that activity was residential or commercial work.

Accommodation and food services produced mixed results: full-service restaurants were reported up about 6.5% year to date and limited-service restaurants up about 2.7%, while drinking places were down roughly 5.2%. Hotels and motels were a bright spot — staff said February was "exceptional," with hotels up 46% for that month and year-to-date hotel receipts up 16.1%.

Automotive subsectors diverged: new-car dealers were reported up about 16.1% year to date, while used-vehicle sales were down roughly 9–10% and other motor-vehicle dealers (RVs, boats) were down about 6.3%; auto repair and maintenance were up about 3.4%.

Staff also noted broader indicators. Citing a New York Federal Reserve quarterly report, staff said household debt measures had stabilized in the most recent quarter and that credit-card and auto-loan balances fell from the prior quarter, a rare occurrence in recent years.

The county's historical average sales-tax growth rate is about 3.9%, staff said, while the rolling 12-month growth rate at the time of the report was around 1.1%.

Staff concluded the report by advising commissioners that while the near-term numbers left the county slightly ahead year to date, the slower growth trend compared with historical averages bears watching as the county finalizes budgeting assumptions for 2026.

Ending: County staff said they would continue to monitor sector-level detail and bring updated data to future meetings as budgeting and forecasting proceed. Quotations in this article are taken from the county presentation during the May 19, 2025 strategic planning meeting.