(Kingston, NY, March 4, 2026) – Ulster County Comptroller March Gallagher released a Sales Tax Revenues Snapshot showing that 2025 actual sales tax revenue of $180.9 million exceeded projected revenue by $5.9 million. Sales tax is a substantial revenue for the County and provided 38% of all budgeted revenues for 2025. The report provides a decade of sales tax history, information on the largest sales tax generating sectors of the economy, and an analysis of the impact of internet sales on sales tax revenues.
“Without the approval of sales tax on electronic shopping, Ulster County would have seen tens of millions of dollars less in sales tax revenues,” said Comptroller March Gallagher. “The Marketplace Provider Tax boosted sales tax throughout the period of recovery after the pandemic but has since plateaued. Electronic shopping has impacted brick and mortar retail sales where hundreds of millions of dollars in taxable sales that once took place in stores now take place online. Sales tax remains the largest revenue source for County finances, but it is volatile and susceptible to a downturn in the economy. Policymakers must be cautious in their sales tax revenue assumptions moving forward.”
