Vermont Business Magazine Vermont tax revenues were down slightly for the month of June, the last month of the state's fiscal year, but overall finished up more than $20 million over adjusted expectations. Revenue targets were lowered twice during the fiscal year, once last summer and once in the winter, as the personal income tax waned as wages were sluggish. However, the "April surprise," predicted by state economists, resulted in the single biggest month in state history for revenues, as end-of-year bonuses and dividends sent tax obligations higher. Led by the Corporate tax, it also sent General Fund revenues into the black.
Secretary of Administration Justin Johnson released today the preliminary June fiscal year (FY) 2015 revenue results for the General, Transportation, and Education Funds. The revenue targets are based on the Consensus Revenue Forecast adopted by the Vermont Emergency Board on January 20, 2015.
Preliminary General Fund (GF) revenues totaled $124.98 million for June 2015, -$0.36 million or –0.29% short of the monthly target. Year-to-date, GF receipts stand at $1,378.75 million, +$20.85 million or +1.54% above the cumulative target. The results are +$50.38 million or +3.79% above the year-to-date results of the prior fiscal year (FY 2014).
Two things should be noted, Johnson said in a statement. First, $5 million of this over-target performance has been designated, by statute, for deposit into the Entergy - Windham County Economic Development Special Fund, leaving $15.85 million surplus for FY 2015. Second, slightly more than $2.0 million of revenue receipts remain unidentified at this time. We will not know if these receipts will be credited to the General Fund or to other Special Funds until the year-end reconciliation process is completed later this month.
Secretary Johnson said, “For the FY 2015, preliminary Personal Income Tax receipts exceeded the annual target by +$3.60 million, or +0.51%. Corporate Income Tax exceeded target for the year by +$17.72 million, or +17.27%. The consumption tax (Sales & Use and Rooms & Meals) results were mixed, with Sales & Use Tax missing the full year target (-$0.77 million, -0.32%), while Rooms & Meals were better than target for the year (+$1.72 million, +1.15%). The largest under-performance for the year was seen in Inheritance/Estate Tax (-$4.41 million, -30.84%). Inheritance Tax remains a volatile and hard to project component.”
The preliminary Transportation Fund (TF) receipts exceeded both the monthly target (+$0.64 million, +2.26%) and the fiscal year (-$0.85 million, +0.33%). On a cumulative basis, TF revenues of $261.39 million were +$8.00 million or 3.16% ahead of the results for the prior fiscal year (FY 2014).
The preliminary Education Fund (EF) fell below the monthly target for June 2015 by -$0.87 million, or –4.82%. Year-to-date EF revenues were $181.28 million or –1.09% behind the cumulative target. As compared to the prior fiscal year, preliminary June EF results were +$4.25 million or +2.40% higher than the same period for FY 2014.
Johnson concluded, “We are pleased with these preliminary results for June 2015. Overall, the GF and TF performed well and, although EF is slightly below target for the year, the results are still preliminary. After the $5 million transfer, the remainder of the GF surplus will be reserved in the GF Balance Reserve, and used for the subsequent fiscal year, in accordance with 32 V.S.A. §308c."
