The Economic Revenue Forecast Council reports today that tax collections were $26.7 million higher for the Oct. 11 – Nov. 10 collection period than forecasted in September.
That’s after earlier-than expected property tax payments, $21.7 million, of the collection total are backed out. A commensurate reduction is expected to be reflected in future collection reports.
The bottom line is that cumulative collections since the September forecast now total $51.8 million, or 2.2 percent, above the forecast once the early property tax payment and other large one-time payments are excluded.
The report also finds that the net increase of jobs for September was 2,200, or 0.1 percent, showing higher than expected growth in private service-providing employment and government employment. Aerospace employment in Washington was down 1,300 jobs since reaching its peak in Nov. 2012.
Little change is expected for housing construction in the third quarter after a dramatic drop from 36,000 building permits in the first quarter to 27,700 in the second. The Council reports that though new home construction has slowed, regional home prices continue to rise rapidly.
The next revenue forecast is due Nov. 20. The next caseload demand for state services is due Thursday. The governor will use both forecasts to construct his proposed 2014 supplemental budget. The regular session is scheduled to begin Jan. 13.