NJ Tax Collections Fall Short

Officials are blaming the weather for why tax collections in New Jersey are falling short of budget projections.

• Click here to read the Revenue Release Oct 2011 (pdf)

Treasury Department figures show collections during the first four months of the fiscal year that began in July are trailing projections by 3.4 percent.

Officials believe Hurricane Irene, Tropical Storm Lee and the October snowstorm changed spending habits.  Treasury chief economist Charles Steindel told the Statehouse Bureau of The Star-Ledger of Newark and The Record New Jersey the state is likely to continue to feel weather-related economic effects into November.

The state collected just under $1.8 billion from business, income and sales taxes in October. While that's 3 percent off the forecast for the month, it's slightly more than what the state generated in October 2010.

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