Good news for Washington State. Taxable retail sales statewide grew more than 7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2014, over the fourth quarter of 2103. Taxable retail transactions (that exclude non-taxable retail items such as food and prescription drugs) between Oct. 1, and Dec. 31, 2014, was $33.4 billion.

In Issaquah, taxable retail sales totaled $365 million during the fourth quarter of 2014. That amount is up 7.3 percent over the fourth quarter of 2013.

In Sammamish, fourth quarter taxable retail sales jumped to $116 million or 9.4  percent over the same quarter a year ago.

In Bellevue, taxable retail sales in the fourth quarter of 2014 were  $1.698 billion, up 9.4 percent from the same quarter a year earlier. For 2014 in total, taxable retail sales in Bellevue in 2014, reached $6 billion — up 11 percent from 2013.

The figures are from a quarterly report prepared by the Washington State Department of Revenue. The Quarterly Business Review details the fourth quarter 2014 taxable sales by industry, as collected from tax returns. The report compares the fourth quarter of 2014 to 2013, equalizing any seasonal effects that would influence spending decisions.

Changes seen in consumer spending patterns during the year included:

•E-commerce and mail order sales rose 18.9 percent

•New and used car sales increased 9.4 percent

•Building materials and related equipment was up 9.2 percent

•Department store sales dropped by 0.6 percent

A taxable retail sale equals the retail sale activity less deductions or exemptions and is the amount subject to retail sales tax.

A substantial portion of retail sales are not subject to retail sales tax. Examples include food, motor vehicle fuel, prescription drugs, certain medical goods, interstate sales, and sales of goods to the federal government.

Statewide, taxable sales may understate the true level of retail activity.