A gross receipts tax or gross excise tax is a tax on the total gross revenues of a company, regardless of their source. A gross receipts tax is similar to a sales tax, but it is levied on the seller of goods or service consumers. This is compared to other taxes listed as separate line items on billings, are not directly included in the listed price of the item, and are not a factor in markup or profit on company sales. A gross receipts tax has a pyramid effect that increases the actual taxable percentage as it passes through the product or service life-cycle.
Criticism
Economists have criticized gross receipts taxes for encouraging vertical integration among companies and imposing different effective tax rates across different industries.
Several states in the United States have imposed gross receipts taxes.
Alabama - Per Article 3 of the code of Alabama, the state has imposed this type of tax on most utilities.
Delaware - Business and occupational gross receipts tax rates range from 0.096% to 1.92%, depending on the business activity.
Florida - A tax of 2.5% is imposed on "gross receipts from the sale, delivery, or transportation of natural gas, manufactured gas, or electricity to a retail consumer in Florida," referring to utility companies.
Hawaii - Hawaii imposes its General Excise Tax as a gross receipts tax on all business done in Hawaii, at 0.5% for wholesaling and manufacturing, 0.15% for insurance commissions, and 4% for all other activities. Businesses may pass on the GET as a sales-tax-like surcharge but are not required to do so.
Illinois - Illinois policy makers are considering a 1% gross receipts tax to increase the foundation level for Illinois public schools, as well as to fund a host of educational accountability initiatives. The tax is expected to generate enough revenue to replace the state share of the retail sales tax, corporate franchise taxes, and corporate income taxes. Proponents claim that it is simple for both the government and business to administer, easy for the public to understand, broad-based, stable, and progressive. An editorial article in the Chicago Tribune called it "the best idea" for education funding reform, but some statewide business leaders have rushed to condemn it.
Nevada - Gross receipts tax adopted in 2015
New Mexico - The gross receipts tax rate varies throughout the state from 5.125% to 8.6875% with local option taxes imposed at the city and county levels, added to the statewide base tax rate of 5%.
Oregon - Corporate Activity Tax
Ohio - Commercial Activity Tax
Pennsylvania - Either 5% or 5.9% for most applicable industries. Tax stands at 1% for private bankers, and the tax on natural gas was repealed during the industry's deregulation. The City of Philadelphia additionally imposes a Business Income and Receipts Tax, a portion of which is based on gross receipts.
Washington - Business and Occupation Tax(B&O
In addition to these states, Texas has a "margin tax" on certain corporate net revenues.
