Arkansas sees fiscal year tax collections dip of 7.2%

by The City Wire staff ([email protected]) 60 views 

Total tax collections for Arkansas for the first three months of fiscal 2010 (July-September)  are $1.274 billion, down 7.2% from the same period of 2008 and 6.4% off the revenue forecast, according to information released Friday (Oct. 2) by the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration.

“The amount below forecast is due to a mix of declines across all the major revenue categories,” DF&A officials noted in a statement.

Gross receipts collections (primarily of sales and use taxes) for the fiscal year are $508.4 million, down $54.7 million, or 9.7% below the same period in 2008. The collections are also 10.8% below revenue forecasts.

Fiscal year-to-date individual income tax collections total $577.9 million, 6.3% below the same period in 2008, and 4.4% below forecasts. Year-to-date individual income tax refunds total $24 million, up 13.1% compared to last year and 5.6% above forecast. 

“Collections growth for individual monthly withholding is also down -2.1% from year ago levels,” according to the DF&A statement.

Year-to-date corporate revenues total $70.1 million, down 22.8% from the 2008 period. Year-to-date corporate income tax refunds total $5.2 million, 18.7% below the 2008 period, and 24.6% below forecast.

KEY SEPTEMBER FIGURES
September total tax collections for the state totaled $464.2 million, down 14.2% below last year and 12% below forecast.

September gross receipts collections were $162.7 million, down $20.8 million, or 11.3% from the 2008 period. The collections were also 12.5% below forecasts. The sales and use tax is a commonly accepted indicator of consumer spending (consumer confidence).