Tax revenues decline for November

Advertiser Staff

November tax revenues for the state were down from the same month a year ago, but tax analysts say it is largely the result of an accounting issue and that economic indicators for the year still look positive.

The state collected $230.9 million in November, down about $22 million or about 8.7 percent from November 2002.

Francis Okano, research and planning officer for the Tax Department, said a major reason is that the number of corporate and individual tax refunds processed in November 2002 was unusually low, the deliberate result of a changeover in computer systems.

As a result, Okano said, this November's refunds, while not unusual, appeared significantly lower when compared to last year.

Despite the anomaly, the year-to-date amount of revenue collected into the general fund remained $13.6 million, or 1 percent, ahead of the first five months of the last fiscal year.

Okano noted that collections of withholding taxes on wages and general excise tax, two of the key economic indicators, were up last month compared to November 2002, and remain higher for the year as well.

The state Council on Revenues, whose revenue projections are used to plan the state general fund budget, forecast an increase for the year of 6.2 percent.