FY27 Local Revenue
Local revenue is 15.4% of the City's revenue budget in FY27, $40.7 million less than the FY26 budget.
Local revenue is revenue from excise taxes, payments-in-lieu-of-taxes, licenses and permits, fees and fines, investment income, intergovernmental revenue, and available funds. The City collected $813.2 million in local revenue in FY25, 1.9% less than FY24. In FY26, the City budgeted $793.7 million for these sources. For FY27, the City is budgeting $753.0 million. This budget shows the continued economic uncertainty facing the City.
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Still have questions? Contact:
Budget
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1 City Hall Square
Room 813Boston, MA 02201-2037
Overview
Recurring Local Receipts by Type
Recurring local receipts is revenue the City is able to generate locally other than property tax. These include items like excise taxes, fees, fines, and permits. This revenue source is budgeted to decrease by $56.7 million in FY27, 7.4% less than FY26.
While collections for local revenues have increased for the last several years, the City is monitoring the high inflationary environment, as that can significantly affect this subset of revenues. As in prior years, the Finance Cabinet will work with departments to review revenues to maximize collections.
The graph to the right shows the share of each category within this revenue source.
FY20-FY25 are actual collections, FY26 and FY27 are budgeted amounts.
Excises
An excise tax is a tax applying to a specific industry or good.
The largest excise tax collected for the City is the local room occupancy excise, levied on occupancy of hotel rooms, motel rooms, and short-term rental units. In addition to the local tax, the State collects a 5.7% excise tax and a 2.75% fee, transferred to the State’s convention center fund, for a total tax from all sources of 14.95%.
The FY26 budget was set at $148.0 million in local room occupancy collections. In the FY27 budget, this amount is estimated to grow to $162.1 million. This increase reflects the strength of the hotel, restaurant, and tourism industries.
Other excise taxes budgeted in FY27 include:
- Meals - 0.75% local excise on meals
- Jet fuel tax - 5% of the average sales price, but no less than five cents per gallon
- Motor vehicle - an excise in lieu of property tax on motor vehicles, $25 per one thousand dollars of vehicle valuation
See below a table with all excise taxes the City collects.
The table below LISTS all excise taxes levied in the City:
| Categories | FY25 Actual | FY26 Budget | FY27 Budget | Difference in $ | Difference in % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Room Occupancy | $147,088,220 | $148,000,000 | $162,100,000 | $14,100,000 | 10.4% |
| Motor Vehicle | $75,177,480 | $71,300,000 | $73,000,000 | $1,700,000 | 2.4% |
| Meals | $41,341,922 | $42,800,000 | $42,800,000 | $0 | 0% |
| Aircraft Fuel | $41,959,746 | $41,500,000 | $30,000,000 | -$11,500,000 | -27.7% |
| Vehicle Rental Surcharge | $1,428,636 | $1,440,000 | $1,200,000 | -$240,000 | -16.7% |
| Marijuana Excise | $2,941,746 | $3,660,000 | $3,786,200 | $126,200 | 3.4% |
| Condominium Conversion | $481,500 | $500,000 | $430,000 | $70,000 | 14.0% |
| Short Term Rental | $1,491,288 | $1,800,000 | $1,785,000 | -$15,000 | 0.8% |
| Boat Excise | $31,700 | $10,000 | $8,800 | -$1,200 | -12.0% |
Learn more about the Budget
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Still have questions? Contact:
Budget
-
1 City Hall Square
Room 813Boston, MA 02201-2037
