Texas Comptroller Susan Combs today announced that the state collected $1.57 billion in sales tax revenue in June, down 11.2 percent compared to June 2008.

“The oil and gas, construction and retail trade sectors showed continued weakness, resulting in a sharp decrease in sales tax collections in June,” Combs said. “Contributing to the decrease was not only the weakness in these three sectors, but also the strong level of collections received from them in June 2008.”

Combs sent July sales tax allocations totaling $426.7 million to cities, counties, transit systems and special purpose taxing districts, down 8.8 percent compared to July 2008.

Combs sent July sales tax allocations of $284.3 million to Texas cities, down 8.8 percent compared to July 2008. So far this calendar year, city sales tax allocations are down 1.6 percent compared to the same time period last year. Texas counties received sales tax payments of $26 million, down 10 percent compared to last July. So far this year, sales tax allocations to counties are up 0.9 percent compared to this point in 2008.

Combs sent $16.6 million to 151 special purpose taxing districts, down 5.5 percent compared to last July. Ten local transit systems received $99.6 million in sales tax allocations, down 8.9 percent compared to a year ago.

State sales tax collections in June and local sales tax allocations in July represent sales that occurred in May.

For details of July sales tax payments to individual cities, counties, transit systems and special purpose districts, locate the Monthly Sales Tax Allocation Comparison Summary Reports on the Comptroller’s Web site at www.window.state.tx.us/taxinfo/allocsum/compsum.html.

The Comptroller’s next sales tax allocation will be made on Friday, Aug. 14th.