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State finance commissioner predicts recession amid plummeting tax revenue

State finance commissioner predicts recession amid plummeting tax revenue

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A decline in tax revenues in April and other economic indicators point to a pandemic-inspired recession that will be “one for the record books,” the state finance commissioner wrote.

State tax collections were off by nearly 50 percent last month, mostly because of the delayed deadline from April 15 to July 15 for income tax filings, Administrative and Financial Services Commissioner Kirsten Figueroa wrote in a monthly email to the governor and lawmakers.

The delay in individual and corporate income tax revenue translated to $264 million less than projected in those categories.

Even accounting for that, “it’s becoming apparent that the swift and deep COVID-19 related recession will be one for the record books,” Figueroa wrote. “Recovery is expected to be slow,” she added.

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