A recent report from the Iowa Department of Revenue, estimated taxable retail sales were down in the 1st quarter of 2011 year-over-year across the county. In the first three months of 2011, taxable sales were just about $49.6 million, down 1.2% from around $50.3 million in 2010. In Knoxville, taxable sales were down 8.9%, from $19 million to $17.3 million. Pella saw an 2.4% increase in taxable sales, from $28.6 million to $29.3 million. Bussey saw the largest percentage increase of any city. Taxable sales in Bussey increased almost 17% year-over-year, from about $166,000 to $195,000. Overall in Iowa, taxable retail sales were up 2.6% year over year.