Projected State Budget Surplus Collapses
HARTFORD In a sharp change in only three months, state revenue projections are down by $461.5 million since January knocking out more than 90 percent of the state's projected budget surplus.
The surplus projections are now down from more than $500 million to a razor-thin margin of about $43 million for the current fiscal year that ends on June 30.
The collapse of the surplus has prompted Gov. Dannel P. Malloy to drop plans for $55 tax rebates for individuals and $110 for couples and the numbers could have further repercussions as Malloy and the legislature try to balance the state budget before the legislative session ends May 7.
The latest consensus revenue estimates were released Wednesday thus resetting the table for the final state budget negotiations that will be continuing this week. The latest numbers show that the state expects to collect $8.632 billion from the personal income tax for the current fiscal year, which is down from a projection of $9.021 billion in January.
http://www.courant.com/news/politics/hc-state-budget-surplus-20140430,0,6081199.story
What a mess! I was not happy about the "rebate" discussions as I thought it was irresponsible when we could fund other needs, like our pension funds, but the total reversal is just mega bad press.