West Virginia is on track to meet its budget estimates for this fiscal year.
In a press call with reporters, Revenue Secretary Dave Hardy said the state’s General Revenue Fund is 4.5 percent ahead of where it was this time last year – and overall budget estimates for this fiscal year are, so far, on target.
November saw nearly $300 million in increased revenue bringing the cumulative General Revenue Fund collections to more than $1.6 billion.
“I’m happy,” Hardy said, “I think the revenue projections are good for the people of West Virginia, and there’s certainly, hopefully, we’re beginning to see the making of a trend here, because we are 5/12 of the way through the fiscal year.”
There were some shortfalls in November collections, however – such as severance tax – which taxes coal, oil and natural gas. Severance taxes were down $3.5 million last month, but compared to last year, Hardy notes, it was up 19 percent from November 2016.
Hardy says collections in personal income, consumer sales, and corporate net receipts helped to offset November’s shortfalls.
The State Road Fund saw a big increase from the previous year – over 16 percent above prior year receipts. Hardy says this is due, in large part, to the increase in license plate fees, fuel tax, and a 1 percent sales tax enacted by the West Virginia Legislature.