Finance director flags $57M retail sales‑tax anomaly and telecom overstatement; STR permit compliance still incomplete

Finance Director Mr. Byrd briefed the committee on revenue drivers and several data anomalies that affect short‑term projections.

Byrd flagged a one‑time retail sales‑tax return recorded in May of roughly $57,000,000 that staff cannot yet attribute to a single business and has asked the state to verify whether the return represents a 12‑month filing in one month or another anomaly. “We don’t know who the retail — who the business is. We are working with the state right now to try to see is that maybe 12 months that’s filed in one month or is there another anomaly?” Byrd said.

He also described a telecom posting that initially doubled expected revenues — roughly $160 million versus the expected ~$84 million — which staff restated in the packet using year‑to‑date averages and sent to the state for correction. Byrd said the town left the retail figure in the accounts rather than remove it pending the state’s response.

On tourism and short‑term rental (STR) permitting, Byrd said tourism sectors were broadly positive (hospitality tax and restaurants strong), but STR permitting remains a transition: a committee member noted the staff dashboard showed 3,383 permitted units out of roughly 7,500 total. Staff said it expects compliance to improve after a new portal opens Jan. 1 and that calendar‑year timing differences will affect how those revenues show in fiscal projections.

Councilmembers asked staff to continue working with the state treasurer’s office to reconcile the anomalous filings and to update the revenue tables in the October packet once the state provides clarifications.