Did you know that the City of Norman's day-to-day operations, like all other cities and towns in Oklahoma, are primarily funded by revenue from sales tax? That's because Oklahoma is the only state in the nation where cities depend almost entirely on sales tax for general operations.
This is why it is so important to shop in Norman. When you shop in other metro area cities, you are investing in their police and fire services, helping to repair their city streets, and maintaining their city parks. We wanted to share this important information because many residents don't realize that shopping in other cities improves the quality of life in those cities, rather than here in Norman.
What Can You Do?
- Shop locally. Here's a printable flyer with great reasons to shop here and support our local merchants.
- Shop with online retailers that collect and remit sales tax. If they don't charge sales tax, you report your use tax on your state income tax forms.
- When you make a purchase outside the City of Norman, sales tax is paid on the point of delivery. That means if you purchase something (furniture or appliances, for example) and have it delivered to you in the Norman city limits, sales tax should be collected and remitted to Norman. (Check to verify that it is.)
How is sales tax in Norman distributed?
Here is a short, 90-second video that explains how sales tax you pay in Norman gets distributed and the ways it benefits our quality of life.
Here's a chart that shows how our current sales tax compares to last year as of June 2019.
The general purpose use tax for the month of April (reflecting sales of goods purchased outside of Oklahoma for delivery within Norman during the month of February) was $375,781. This is an increase of $70,051 (+22.91%) above April 2018 levels. Fiscal year 2018-2019 use tax collections are now 36.12% above prior-year levels.
The general purpose sales tax remittance for the month of June (reflecting sales during April) was $4,857,158. This is an increase of $190,994 (+4.09%) over June, 2018 levels. Fiscal year 2018-2019 general purpose sales tax increased by 1.76% over FYE 2018 levels.
The general purpose use tax remittance for the month of June (reflecting tax collections on goods purchased outside of Oklahoma for use within Norman) was $411,691. This is an increase of $126,583 (+44.4%) over June, 2018 levels. Fiscal year 2018-2019 general purpose use tax increased by 36.03% over FYE 2018 levels.
