State revenue down $7.7 million in last month

The Economic and Revenue Forecast Council’s monthly collections update reports that state revenue collections are down $7.7 million, or 0.9%, from February’s revenue forecast.

The Olympian reports that this change in collections is too minimal to affect budget negotiations between lawmakers during the special session that began yesterday.

You can find the full report here. It continues to point to notable improvements in the state and national economies with increasing private sector employment tempered by reductions in state and local governments.

Despite these gains, the Council remains leery of a number of downside risks, most notably the sovereign debt crisis in Europe, and the potential affect that could have on the national economy if conditions worsen.

“There is no shortage of potential setbacks to the recovery,” the report reads.