Sales tax revenue collected by merchants dipped during the latest distribution from the Missouri Department of Revenue.
The total for a one-cent sales tax was $54,577, which was down about $2,968 from the same period a year ago. For the first six months of the year, the total is $328,481, which is up 2.1 percent for the year.
Houston merchants also collect two quarter-cent sales taxes for streets and sidewalk, as well as utility needs. Each contributed about $13,400, which was down about $360 from the same period a year ago.
An eighth-cent sales tax for debt repayment on a city fire truck totaled $6,702.
The reports are considered a good barometer of economic activity.