On May 2, Gov. Tom Wolf announced Pennsylvania collected $6.5 billion in General Fund revenue in April, which was $1.8 billion, or 38.7 percent, over estimate, and the most tax revenue ever collected in a single month.

Fiscal year-to-date General Fund collections total $40.7 billion, which is $4.5 billion, or 12.4 percent, above estimate.

The Independent Fiscal Office also reported April state revenues exceeded its estimate by 44.4% - $2 billion and its year-to-date estimate by $5.04 billion.  Read more here.

“After this month’s collections, Pennsylvania revenues are so far ahead of estimate that we already have the money in the bank to pay for the historic investment I want to make in K-12 education, as well as the Corporate Net Income Tax cut and reforms I have proposed to bolster Pennsylvania businesses,” said Gov. Wolf. “My administration has done a lot of work to get the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in a good place financially. It has taken a lot of hard work and a lot of years, but our state government is frankly swimming in cash right now and we need to reinvest it in things that will make Pennsylvanians’ lives better.”

“And all of our forecasting shows that we’re not just dealing with one strong year here – we’ve established a strong foundation that Pennsylvania can build on in the years to come. That’s not just my own claim, either – it’s backed up by data from nationally recognized financial forecasting firms.”

“Frankly, the most irresponsible thing we can do right now is hoard this money when we should use it to help lower costs for Pennsylvanians.

Proposed Conservation Investments

In February, Gov. Wolf proposed to allocate $450 million in federal American Rescue Plan funding for conservation purposes [Read more here] in response to a bipartisan, two-bill package that would allocate $500 million from the same source to the Growing Greener Program.  Both proposals would support local environmental improvement projects [Read more here].

“Despite what you may hear from fiscal fearmongers, Pennsylvania’s financial future has never been brighter,” said Gov. Wolf. “We have a lot of money to work with for the 2022-23 budget, and I want to use that to take some pressure off of Pennsylvania families. Times are tough right now, and while Pennsylvanians are hurting, the worst thing we can do with this money is nothing.”

April Revenue Collections

See below for a further breakdown of April revenue collections--

Sales tax receipts totaled $1.2 billion for April, $120.7 million above estimate. Year-to-date sales tax collections total $11.5 billion, which is $888.5 million, or 8.4 percent, more than anticipated.

Personal income tax (PIT) revenue in April was $4.1 billion, $1.4 billion above estimate. This brings year-to-date PIT collections to $15.4 billion, which is $2.1 billion, or 15.4 percent, above estimate.       

April corporation tax revenue of $676.1 million was $306.4 million above estimate. Year-to-date corporation tax collections total $5.8 billion, which is $1.1 billion, or 23.7 percent, above estimate.

Inheritance tax revenue for the month was $133.0 million, $22.0 million above estimate, bringing the year-to-date total to $1.3 billion, which is $144.2 million, or 12.5 percent, above estimate.

Realty transfer tax revenue was $77.6 million for April, $25.9 million above estimate, bringing the fiscal-year total to $701.8 million, which is $140.0 million, or 24.9 percent, more than anticipated.

Other General Fund tax revenue, including cigarette, malt beverage, liquor and gaming taxes, totaled $39.8 million for the month, $13.8 million below estimate and bringing the year-to-date total to $1.4 billion, which is $19.7 million, or 1.4 percent, above estimate.

Non-tax revenue totaled $230.6 million for the month, $4.0 million below estimate, bringing the year-to-date total to $4.6 billion, which is $122.3 million, or 2.7 percent, above estimate.

In addition to the General Fund collections, the Motor License Fund received $247.2 million for the month, $36.1 million below estimate. Fiscal year-to-date collections for the fund – which include the commonly known gas and diesel taxes, as well as other license, fine and fee revenues – total $2.3 billion, which is $19.5 million, or 0.8 percent, above estimate.

Related Articles:

-- Two Bipartisan Bills Just Sitting In Senate Waiting To Address Record Number Of Water Quality Impaired Streams Reported In 2022

-- WeConservePA Urges General Assembly, Gov. Wolf To Boost Conservation Investments - There Has Never Been A Better Time

-- Two-Thirds Of Pennsylvanians Support Increased Funding For PA State Parks, Forests

Related Articles This Week:

-- DCNR: Never Been A Better Time To Invest In State Park, Forest Infrastructure Improvements, Local Conservation Projects

-- EPA Announces $40 Million From Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Funding For Chesapeake Bay Restoration; PA Receives $5.59 Million+ 

-- USDA Announces Additional $22.5 Million In Chesapeake Bay Restoration Funding

-- Bay Journal: EPA Ramps Up Clean Water Inspections After PA's Plan Fails To Meet Chesapeake Bay Water Pollution Reduction Goals - By Karl Blankenship, Chesapeake Bay Journal

-- DCNR, Agriculture Join Chesapeake Bay Commission Members At Planting In Lancaster County To Highlight Role Of Stream Buffers; Learn How To Buffer Your Stream

-- Lisa Daniels Now Serving As DEP’s Acting Deputy For Water Programs Overseeing Chesapeake Bay, Other Water-Related Initiatives

-- CBF, Stone Independent School To Plant Over 2,000 Trees In Lancaster, York Counties May 7, Volunteers Welcome

-- CBF Blog: Acid Mine Drainage - The Legacy Of Coal Mining A Key Source Of Harm To Pennsylvania's Headwaters

[Posted: May 2, 2022]

5/9/2022