Excerpt By: Carolina Journal. Written By: Dan Way.
North Carolina should end the budget year more than a half-billion dollars above revenue projections, and House and Senate Republican leadership swiftly credited their tax-cutting, and regulatory-relief policies for the positive budget news.
The General Assembly’s Fiscal Research Division and the Office of State Budget and Management released a consensus report Thursday projecting 2016-17 tax collections would be $552.5 million above initial budget projections for the fiscal year.
Stronger-than-expected wage growth increased both personal income tax and sales tax collections, the report said. If that rate of growth continues, the 2018-19 fiscal year surplus could reach an estimated $1 billion.
Senate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, emphasized how rare North Carolina’s enormous surplus is.
“Even as the majority of other states face revenue shortfalls and budget crunches, Republican state leaders’ tax cuts, and disciplined spending have generated a $552 million revenue surplus for North Carolina — making us one of just four states in the country expecting surpluses,” Berger said in a news release.
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