newjerseynewsroom.com

BY BOB HOLT

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

New Jersey’s revenue collection has fallen short of projected estimates, so that familiar time may be approaching: earlier than expected-mid-year budget cuts.

State Treasurer Andrew Sidamon-Eristoff believes the falloff in revenue is due to rare weather occurrences in the state, like Hurricane Irene in August, and major snowstorm in late October.

According to Bloomberg, revenue collections fell short of projections by 3.1 percent in October and 3.4 percent for the first four months of the fiscal year beginning July 1. Assemblyman Declan O’Scanlon, of Red Bank, said budget developments will be monitored, and a decision will be made by February on whether to make “corrections.”

“Retail sales are the biggest driver of sales tax collections,” said Dr. Charles Steindel, of the state Treasury, according to NJ Today. “Severe weather discouraged shopping in late September, and in early and late October. Given how long some citizens were without power after the snowstorm, New Jersey is likely to continue to feel weather-related economic effects into November.”

From July 1 through Oct. 31, the state collected $5.9 billion, with nearly all taxes falling below projected totals. The Asbury Park Press reported that N.J. went into July with an expected $640 million budget surplus. Lower tax revenues do not necessarily lead to budget cuts, but make things tighter.

N.J.'s economic recovery has been slower than most states due to the high unemployment rate. According to NJ.com, Moody’s reported earlier this month that the economy and federal budget cuts have slowed many states’ revenue streams.