Preliminary General Fund agency cash for September was $217 million above the 2015-16 Budget Act forecast of $9.491 billion. Year-to-date revenues are $744 million above the expected $22.855 billion.
Personal income tax revenues to the General Fund were $486 million above the month’s forecast of $6.21 billion. Withholding receipts were $244 million above the forecast of $3.772 billion. Other receipts were $278 million higher than the forecast of $2.785 billion. Refunds issued in September were $27 million above the forecasted $236 million.
Year-to-date General Fund income tax revenues are $648 million above forecast.
Sales and use tax receipts were $63 million below the month’s forecast of $1.987 billion. September represents the second prepayment for third quarter taxable sales. Year-to-date revenues are $7 million below forecast.
Corporation tax revenues were $104 million below the month’s forecast of $972 million. Prepayments were $34 million above the forecast of $878 million and other payments were $60 million higher than the $195 million forecast. Total refunds for the month were $198 million higher than the forecast of $101 million. Year-to-date revenues are $143 million below forecast.
Proposition 63 requires that 1.76 percent of total monthly personal income tax collections be transferred to the Mental Health Services Fund (MHSF). The amount transferred to the MHSF in September was $9 million above the forecast of $111 million.
http://www.dof.ca.gov/finance_bulletins/2015/october/
State revenues fell short of Department of Finance projections by 2.6 percent in September, but are still outpacing estimates for the first quarter of the 2015-16 fiscal year, State Controller Betty T. Yee reported today.
In September, two of the state’s three top revenue sources failed to match projections. Retail sales and use tax revenues of $1.7 billion were $392.5 million, or 18.8 percent, less than estimates. Corporation tax revenues of $836.6 million came up $135.2 million short of projections, or 13.9 percent.
Only the personal income tax beat Department of Finance expectations. Revenues of $6.7 billion were $447.0 million (or 7.2 percent) greater than anticipated in the budget, driven by strong proceeds from paycheck withholding, tax returns, estimated payments, and other categories.
Overall, when other taxes and revenues are included, the state in September brought in $9.6 billion, or $252.2 million less than projected in July.
For the first quarter of the 2015-16 fiscal year, revenues outpaced estimates, driven by personal income tax proceeds that surpassed projections by $606.2 million, or 4.1 percent. This was more than enough to offset shortfalls in the corporation tax of $100.6 million, or 7.3 percent, and $379.1 million, or 6.3 percent, for the retail sales and use tax.
Compared to a year ago, September revenues came up short by 1.8 percent. However, for the first quarter as a whole, revenues exceeded last year’s by $1.6 billion, or 7.5 percent.