This is the third month in a row that sales tax collections have declined by double digits from the 2008-09 city budget. The city collected $14.4 million in February and had expected to take in $16.3 million. For the year, we’re 8.8 percent behind the budget. The details are in our handy clip and save chart.

The sales tax accounts for about 20 percent of the budget. A few more notes after the jump:

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• We’re 7.9 percent behind what we took in during the 2007-08 fiscal year.

• The total for February, according to the state comptroller, is the smallest since February 2005. In fact, it’s the first time the total has fallen below $15 million for any month since November 2006. (The months listed on the comptroller web site are, for accounting purposes, two months ahead. That means the April figure on the site is for February, the March figure is for January, and so forth.)

• We’re on track to collect $215.3 million this year, which would be the least the city garnered from the sales tax since the 2006-07 budget year.