A strong rebound in auto and truck sales boosted fourth-quarter sales tax revenues in Washington and the five most populous counties, the Department of Revenue reported today.

Retail sales for the October-December period rose 5.7 percent compared with 2009, to $12.9 billion

Retail trade sales, which include construction and other industrial sectors, climbed 5.8 percent from 2009, to $26.8 billion in the October-December period.

Total retail trade sales in Spokane County rose 1.7 percent to $926 million, but fell .7 percent in the City of Spokane, to $492 million.

The gains in retail sales were led by new and used car dealers, where revenues rose 11.7 percent compared with the 2009 quarter. Construction continued to be a drag, falling 6.8 percent.

Despite the increases over 2009, the department noted retail trade sales were below levels for 2007 and 2006. Overall retail sales remained below levels for the years 2005 through 2008.

Idaho’s January tax revenue likely beat forecasts by about $15 million. The news, which indicates the economy could be picking up steam, may help mitigate concerns that arose last week about a yawning $185 million budget hole.

Division of Financial Management director Wayne Hammon confirmed the preliminary figure to The Associated Press.

The robust January receipts come despite $9 million in unexpected sales tax rebates paid out to alternative energy companies. Still, this news likely won’t ease lawmakers’ job of determining what revenue figure to budget to when they set the 2012 spending plan, due to start next July 1.

For instance, legislators still must decide whether to synchronize Idaho’s tax code with new federal tax rules, a move that could cost Idaho an estimated $70 million over two years.

Washington's Department of Revenue said in a news release Monday that it has vastly improved the online tool retailers use to find sales tax rates across the state.

The state charges sales tax based on where a product is delivered, not where it originated. The new web tool, found at http://dor.wa.gov, offers several ways to look up location codes and tax rates. Those include address searches, improved maps, and latitude and longitude, according to the news release.

Washington retailers, you be the judge.