Tax revenue collections in Pennsylvania for last month came in lower than expected. The commonwealth's revenue is now 1.3% below estimates.
The latest report bolsters arguments from Republican lawmakers that they shouldn't rush to increase funding over preliminary state budget proposals just because revenue collections in March and April came in strong.
Department of Revenue spokeswoman Elizabeth Brassell said no single tax revenue category in May was hugely above or below estimate, but the figures are still $330 million lower than expected for the year-to-date. Still, she acknowledged the numbers are a lot better than earlier predictions of a year-end deficit of roughly $719 million.
"We're happy that the deficit is less than we predicted in February, but at this point we're not looking to revise any deficit numbers until later in the process," she said.
The state's Independent Fiscal Office will release an additional estimate of the full year's revenue by June 15th. The Senate Majority Leader has said it will provide "another data point" to inform the state budget process if a spending plan is not completed by then.
