New York State’s tax receipts for the first six months of the 2023-24 State Fiscal Year (SFY) reached $51.5 billion, surpassing the Division of the Budget’s (DOB) July projections by $1.7 billion, reported State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Despite the positive results, this total is $6.9 billion less than the corresponding period in SFY 2022-23.
Comptroller DiNapoli pointed to job growth, wage increases, and tempered inflation as significant drivers behind the better-than-anticipated tax revenue. However, he also warned of potential future economic hurdles such as global instability, labor strikes, and the possibility of a federal government shutdown, all of which could weigh on the economy and accentuate existing budget challenges.
A breakdown of the tax receipts revealed that personal income tax (PIT) receipts came in at $26 billion, trailing DOB’s updated projections by $49 million and marking a significant $7.2 billion drop from the prior fiscal year. This decline is attributed partly to the current year’s financial market turbulence and the way PIT credits were claimed in the last fiscal year under the pass-through entity tax (PTET).
Conversely, consumption and use tax collections showcased an upward trend, accumulating $11 billion. This total is 6.8%, or $698.4 million, higher than last year, and exceeds DOB estimates by $105.3 million. Sales tax, making up the majority of these figures, saw an uptick of $563.1 million or 6%. Additionally, business taxes, incorporating collections from the PTET, totaled $12.8 billion, outperforming DOB estimates by a remarkable $1.6 billion, though they were $129.3 million less than the same timeframe in the previous fiscal year.
Highlighting the state’s fiscal health, the General Fund concluded September boasting a balance of $48 billion, which is $3 billion more than the DOB’s forecast, largely attributed to greater tax collections and restrained spending.
FingerLakes1.com is the region’s leading all-digital news publication. The company was founded in 1998 and has been keeping residents informed for more than two decades. Have a lead? Send it to [email protected].