State Closes Out Fiscal Year Up $191 Million

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by Talk Business & Politics staff ([email protected]) July 2, 2015 9:40 am 152 views 

Arkansas finished its fiscal year with a $191.6 million surplus and more than $6.47 billion in gross tax collections.

Gross general revenues were up 3.7% above last year and 1.1% above forecast.

Net general revenues, which reflect discretionary spending for the state, closed the year on June 30 with $5.25 billion in collections. The amount is $228.1 million, or 4.5% above prior year results and 3.8% above expectations.

“All categories of the general revenue budget were funded during the year,” said John Shelnutt, director of Economic Analysis and Tax Research for the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. “The fiscal year ended above forecast and above the budgeted amount as a result of improving growth in gross revenue (collections) and lower-than-expected payouts from income tax refunds and other deductions. One-time deposits also influenced year ago comparisons.”

The state received two substantial one-time payouts in the fiscal year. The attorney general’s office deposited $14.4 million as a result of a major lawsuit settlement and the Arkansas Insurance Department transferred $51.1 million into the state coffers, a portion of which came from money accumulated above a three-year department fund balance.

FULL-YEAR RESULTS
DF&A offered a breakdown of revenue categories on a year-to-date basis:

  • Fiscal Year 2015 Individual Income Taxes: Fiscal year 2015 individual income tax collections total $3,188.5 million, $77.3 million or 2.5 percent above FY 2014 collections and $67.4 million or 2.2 percent above forecast.
  • Fiscal Year 2015 Sales and Use Collections: Fiscal year 2015 Sales and Use tax collections total $2,197.8 million, an increase of $24.6 million or 1.1 percent over FY 2014 and $14.9 million or -0.7 percent below forecast.
  • Fiscal Year 2015 Corporate Income Taxes: Fiscal year corporate revenues total $493.1 million, an increase of $52.9 million or 12.0 percent above FY 2014. Collections came in $16.1 million or 3.4 percent above forecast.

THE FINAL MONTH OF JUNE
The state’s final month of the fiscal year, June 2015, reported strong overall tax growth.

June net available general revenues totaled $587.0 million, $47.9 million or 8.9% above last year. Net general revenues were $58.9 million or 11.2% above forecast for the month.

“Net available funds in June were influenced primarily by one-time factors, mixed with positive underlying growth in major categories,” Shelnutt said.

The one-time factors consisted of $14.4 million from a deposit from the Attorney General’s Office and $51.1 million from the Arkansas Insurance Department.

“The major income categories displayed mixed results for the month. Individual and corporate income tax exceeded the forecast and sales and use tax collections fell from year ago levels and forecast due to a $28.7 million in refunds issued in response to a court ruling,” Shelnutt added.

Readers can access the report here.