A new report by the Tennessee Department of Revenue says the state spends more than half of its sales tax dollars helping educate students.
That report says 56 cents out of every state and local sales tax dollar collected goes to education.
The Tennessee Department of Revenue is the state’s primary tax collection agency and state and local sales tax make up most of the tax collections in the state. During the 2023 fiscal year the state of Tennessee allocated $7.8 billion of its sales and use taxes to education. Most of the remaining dollars went to the state’s General Fund and local allocations.
The state’s education fund also received more than $185 million from the state’s tobacco tax and more than $106 million from the liquor-by-the-drink tax,.
The Department of Revenue administers a total of more than 25 different taxes and fees, collecting more than $22 billion in state fees and taxes and $4.6 billion in local taxes during the 2023 fiscal year.
“We make public services possible. Each Revenue employee plays an important role, and without their work, the state could not provide necessary services, like paving roads and building schools,” said Commissioner of Revenue David Gerregano.
