MacIver Minute Blog | August 26, 2015
[Madison, Wisc…] The latest numbers from the Department of Revenue (DOR) were released on Wednesday and it is good news for the Wisconsin economy. Even as taxes continue to go down in the state, revenues are actually up.From fiscal year 2014 (FY14) to FY15, state revenues are up 4.3 percent – a jump from $13.9 billion to $14.5 billion. This is a sign that the Wisconsin economy continues to grow and the state is taking in more revenue despite cutting taxes in recent years.
Actual tax revenues are also higher than projections from the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau that were released in January. While individual income taxes came in slightly below those projections, overall collections were $71 million higher than expected earlier this year.
Another good sign for the economy is that sales tax collections beat January estimates and FY14 levels, meaning people are spending more money. Sales tax revenues increased from $4.6 billion in FY14 to $4.9 billion in FY15 – a 5.7 percent bump.
The reported numbers are unaudited and will be finalized in October.