LITTLE ROCK — State revenues fell by $41 million in April, forcing the state to again cut its forecast this fiscal year and to tap the state’s “rainy day’ fund.
Richard Weiss, director of the state Department of Finance and Administration, said the decline last month was mostly in one-time individual income tax collections.
The two economic indicators that the state closely watches, sales tax collections and tax withholdings, were both above forecast.
Gov. Mike Beebe announced he would release about $25.4 million from the state’s $40 million “rainy day’ fund to avert cuts in state services. Most of that money will go to the state’s public schools, Weiss said.
The remaining shortfall will be funded with a $17.3 million transfer from the unspent general revenue in the Education Facilities Partnership Fund, the governor said.
Despite the reduction, Beebe said the “overall economic trend remains positive.”
“If this anomaly had hit a few weeks ago, we might have been able to make up for it over time,” the governor said in a news release. “However, with only two months left in the current fiscal year, we are going to move more money, including rainy-day funds, to prevent any potential cuts in state services. We set aside rainy day money for this exact type of scenario.”
The governor cut the budget $100 million in October because of a shortfall in state revenue, and another $106 million in January before the Legislature’s budget session began.
Net available revenues in April totaled $441.7 million, 10.2 percent below April of last year and $32 million, or 6.8 percent, below forecast for the month.
Gross receipts, mostly from sales tax revenue, totaled $601.2 million, which was $49 million, or 7.5 percent, below a year ago and $41.2 million, or 6.4 percent below forecast.
Individual income tax collections brought in $364.8 million, a $50 million drop from last year, and $39.4 million, or 9.8 percent, below forecast.
No comments:
Post a Comment