State tax collections through August dropped by $898 million, or 3 percent, from the same period last year to a total of $28.9 billion, according to the state cash report issued today by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.
While tax collections for the first five months of the fiscal year were $102.6 million over the Executive’s revised projections released in August, they remain more than $596 million below projections made in the Enacted Budget Financial Plan issued in May. This is primarily due to lower than expected personal income tax (PIT) collections, which were $105 million below updated projections through August.
"Personal income tax collections continue to lag while revenue from other tax sources was up,” DiNapoli said. “Quarterly tax payments due in September will provide a better picture of the state’s revenue outlook for the remainder of the year.”
Through August, total, or All Funds, receipts were $58.8 billion, a decline of $1.1 billion or 1.9 percent from a year earlier. Receipts were below Enacted Budget projections by $603.2 million and below August projections by $257.2 million. While the variance from Enacted Budget projections is primarily due to lower PIT collections, the difference from the latest estimates is primarily from lower than projected federal receipts, partially offset by $180 million in new settlement revenue.
Total spending reached $58.4 billion through the first five months of the fiscal year, approximately $3.5 billion, or 6.4 percent, higher than last year for the same period. Significant increases include spending for public health programs (up nearly $750 million largely because of payments for the Essential Plan Program) and Medicaid (up nearly $2.1 billion primarily from federal sources). Overall spending was nearly $368 million lower than the latest projections and $193 million below Enacted Budget projections.
Through the first five months of the fiscal year, the state spent $42.5 billion on local assistance grants from All Funds, including payments to local governments and financial assistance to or on behalf of individuals and non-profits. Year-to-date spending for local assistance grants is $3.3 billion or 8.3 percent higher than last year but $340.1 million lower than the latest projections. The largest local assistance spending program is Medicaid, which totaled $21.7 billion including $13.4 billion in federal aid through August. The largest local assistance spending program in terms of state funding is education (including higher education), which totaled $9.1 billion through August 31, $10.3 billion when including federal aid.
The General Fund ended August with a balance of $6.2 billion, which was $221 million lower than the latest projections, $958 million lower than Enacted Budget projections, and $3.3 billion lower than a year earlier.
For a detailed breakdown, go to http://www.osc.state.ny.us/finance/cbr.htm
DiNapoli's office issues a state cash report every month identifying state revenues and spending from the prior month. The cash report focuses primarily on the General Fund and All Governmental Funds. The General Fund is the major operating fund of the state. All Governmental Funds includes General, Special Revenue, Debt Service and Capital Projects funds, as well as funds from the federal government. The report is now accessible in Excel and Adobe formats.
Since becoming Comptroller, DiNapoli has created several tools to allow the public to better track government spending, contracts and other fiscal issues. These are easily accessible on his transparency website called Open Book New York (www.openbooknewyork.com).