General fund revenue in Puerto Rico reached a total of $758 million for the month of November 2021. Compared to November 2020, revenue increased by $102 million, or 15.6%. Compared to the previous month, revenue was down $128 million (14.5%).
Act 154 revenue totaled $55 million. Compared to November 2020, it decreased by $10 million (15.4%). Act 154 revenue for the year to date is at $1.602 billion. Compared to 2020, this is a decrease of $35 million, or 2.1%. This is the second consecutive year with a decline in Act 154 revenue. This revenue has also declined for 3 consecutive fiscal years to date (July-November).
Sales tax revenue reached a total of $256 million during the month of November. Compared to November 2020, this was an increase of $26 million (11.5%). This was the 4th consecutive month with a year over year increase in sales tax revenue. Sales tax revenue for the year to date reached a total of $2.313 billion. Compared to 2020, this is an increase of $686 million (42%). This is also higher than the year-to-date total in 2019 by 3.9%.
Amongst the major revenue categories, income tax revenue increased from $244 million in November 2020 to $342 million in November 2021. This $98 million (40%) increase was concentrated in individual income tax ($44 million) and corporate income tax ($54 million).
Revenue for the fiscal year to date has surpassed the 2021 fiscal year by $22 million (0.5%) but is still down from 2020 by $185 million (4.4%). General fund revenue for the calendar year to date has gone up by $2.4 billion (30%) compared to 2020 but is down compared to 2019 by $686 million (6.1%).
Government revenue is currently on pace to surpass both the 2020 calendar year and the 2021 fiscal year. However, December’s revenue could be lower than expected due to the large increase in COVID contagions due to the Omicron variant. This could have a significant effect on sales and income tax revenue and lead to a weak start to 2022.
