Total Number of Annual U.S. Sales Tax Changes Tops 600 Again

U.S. Sales tax changes are once again on the rise.

This trend marks one of the key takeaways from Vertex’s annual Sales Tax Rate Study, which shows 612 sales and use tax rate changes in the U.S. for 2015.

“Changes” include increases, decreases and new taxes issued by states, counties, cities and districts. Increases outnumber the other types of changes. While the 2015 total represents the highest figure since 2009, when there were 703 such changes, the 2015 total is in line with the 10-year average of 625 sales tax rate changes per year.

That said, there were some eye-opening increases last year.

During the past 12 months, the sales tax rate in Kansas leapt from 6.150% to 6.500%, and Puerto Rico’s rate soared from 6.000% to 10.500%.

“It is significant that both Kansas and Puerto Rico raised sales tax rates in 2015,” reports John Minassian, Vice President of Tax Content Development at Vertex. Both jurisdictions, Minassian explains, have considerable budget shortfalls, and “sales tax increases and income tax schedule adjustments are attempts to generate additional revenue in 2016.”

More on our annual Sales Tax Rate Report is available here.