Mass DOR: December Revenue Collections Total $4.062 Billion

Print Story | Email Story
BOSTON — Massachusetts Department of Revenue (DOR) Commissioner Geoffrey Snyder announced that preliminary revenue collections for December totaled $4.062 billion, $285 million or 6.6 percent less than actual collections in December 2024, and $167 million or 4.0 percent below benchmark.
 
FY2026 year-to-date collections totaled approximately $19.636 billion, which is $375 million or 1.9 percent more than actual collections in the same period of FY2025, and $23 million or 0.1 percent above the year-to-date benchmark.
 
"December 2025 revenue included decreases relative to December 2024 collections in non-withholding income tax, corporate and business tax, and ‘all other tax'" said Commissioner Snyder. "These decreases were partially offset by an increase in withholding income tax and sales tax. The decrease in non-withholding income tax is driven by a decrease in estimated and return payments and an unfavorable increase in refunds. The decrease in corporate and business tax is due to a decrease in estimated and return payments as well as an unfavorable increase in refunds.  The decrease in ‘all other' tax is mostly due to a decrease in estate tax, a category that tends to fluctuate."
 
December is a significant month for revenues because many corporate and business taxpayers are required to make quarterly estimated payments. In addition, some quarterly personal income tax estimated payments due by January 15th are received in December. Historically, roughly 9.5 percent of annual revenue, on average, has been received during December.
 
Given the brief period covered in the report, December results should not be used as a predictor for the rest of the fiscal year.
 
Details:
 
Income tax collections for December totaled $2.465 billion, $27 million or 1.1 percent below benchmark, and $28 million or 1.1 percent less than December 2024.
 
Withholding tax collections for December totaled $1.818 billion, $7 million or 0.4 percent above benchmark, and $66 million or 3.8 percent more than December 2024.
 
Income tax estimated payments for December totaled $599 million, virtually equal to monthly benchmark, but $11 million or 1.8 percent less than December 2024.
 
Income tax returns and bills for December totaled $126 million, $17 million or 15.2 percent above benchmark, but $32 million or 20.0 percent less than December 2024.
 
Income tax cash refunds for December totaled $78 million in outflows, $51 million or 189.2 percent above benchmark, and $52 million or 203.7 percent more than December 2024.
 
Sales and use tax collections for December totaled $874 million, $25 million or 3.0 percent above benchmark, and $10 million or 1.2 percent more than December 2024.
 
Corporate and business tax collections for December totaled $531 million, $160 million or 23.2 percent below benchmark, and $138 million or 20.6 percent less than December 2024.
 
"All other" tax collections for December totaled $192 million, $6 million or 2.8 percent below benchmark, and $129 million or 40.2 percent less than December 2024.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Fenton: Governor's Council Must Deliver for the Berkshires

Community submissionGuest Column
I am a Springfield lawyer running for Governor's Council and I am asking for Berkshire County residents to support me over an incumbent from North Adams. 
 
Here's why: Last year I learned about staffing issues in our regional courts that I could not ignore. In 2025, it was reported that four of Western Massachusetts' 11 Superior Court judgeships were vacant, all at the same time. A few weeks later, that grew to five vacancies. This meant there were only six Superior Court judges serving all of Western Mass at a time when Berkshire, Hampshire, Franklin, and Hampden counties had more than 100 pending homicide cases. 
 
Those numbers were alarming to me, so I started to engage with leaders in the community who work most closely with the court system and I came to learn that these vacancies were only the tip of the iceberg here in Berkshire County.
 
I learned that no Superior Court or District Court judge had been appointed from the Berkshires since the current incumbent took office. As a result, there is not a single Superior Court judge who lives in the Berkshires today, and several of the District Court judges drive in from other counties to support Berkshire courts in Pittsfield, Great Barrington, and North Adams. Court staff also informed me about severe staffing shortages at the Berkshire Clerk of Courts office resulting in other counties needing to loan staff to the Berkshires just so hardworking employees can take a brief and planned summer vacation. This is not normal. These issues are a reflection of genuine problems with the Berkshire County court system and show a lack of proactive attention from our Governor's Councilor.
 
Instead of focusing on regional equity, I watched as the current incumbent celebrated that she has voted against the governor's nominees more than any other councilor, without much explanation as to why. Most recently, she voted against two extremely qualified former prosecutors for the Parole Board. This was despite an in-person plea from the governor and a letter of support from all the three of the district attorney's from Western Mass. Those votes do not show independence or standing up for principles, they demonstrate naivete, and an unwillingness to work with the key stakeholders.
 
I had seen and heard enough. I decided to jump in the race and challenge the incumbent to address these problems head-on.
 
I am a partner of a regional law firm. I understand our courts and the importance of having qualified, fair and hardworking judges. And I know how important it is to have judges from the Berkshires serving the Berkshires. To achieve that, you need strong relationships with the legal community and local stakeholders. You need to know how to use the power of the Governor's Council to fight forcefully for our region. And you need to be laser focused on identifying vacancies before they occur so that they can be filled quickly with local candidates.
 
View Full Story

More Pittsfield Stories