NEWS RELEASE
Tuesday, November 9, 2004
For immediate release

OCTOBER REVENUE COLLECTIONS
ABOVE PRIOR YEAR, ESTIMATE

(OKLAHOMA CITY) General Revenue Fund collections in October were $21.1 million above prior year receipts for the month and $41.3 million above the estimate, the Office of State Finance reported Monday.

Preliminary reports show General Revenue Fund collections totaled $ 398.6 million in October. That amount was:

• $21.1 million or 5.6 percent above the same month one year ago; and
• $41.3 million or 11.6 percent above the estimate for the month.

“Our major revenue components exceeded or were in line with prior year collections,” Scott Meacham, Director of the Office of State Finance, said. “This, once again, allowed us to post year-over-year gains in state revenue receipts.

“Signs remain generally positive for continued economic strength,” Meacham added, “and we believe the current trend will continue.”

Collections year-to-date are $164.3 million above the estimate for the first four months of the fiscal year, Meacham noted. “That gives us a bit of a cushion as we move through the remainder of the fiscal year,” he said. “We are increasingly confident that state agencies will not face budget reductions during the current fiscal year.”

Income taxes -- This source yielded $171.9 million for the FY-05 General Revenue Fund, which was $3.9 million or 2.3 percent above the prior year’s collections from individual and corporate income taxes and $21.6 million or 14.4 percent above the estimate for revenues from the same sources.

Individual returns produced $167.0 million in October, which was $1.0 million or 0.6 percent below the prior year but $16.9 million or 11.2 percent above the estimate for revenue from this source. Corporate income tax receipts were $4.9 million. That is $4.9 million more than the prior year, when no revenue from this source was reported for the General Revenue Fund, and $4.7 million more than the estimate.

Sales tax -- The state’s number two revenue source produced $111.1 million for the General Revenue Fund, $1.0 million or 0.9 percent more than the prior year but $0.3 million or 0.2 percent below the estimate.

Gross production tax -- This tax on natural gas accounted for $38.7 million in General Revenue Fund receipts, which was $1.9 million or 4.6 percent below the prior year but $10.4 million or 36.8 percent above the estimate.

Motor vehicle taxes -- This source produced $18.1 million, which was $2.1 million or 10.6 percent below the prior year and $0.6 million or 3.2 percent below the estimate.

Other Revenue -- Other revenue produced $58.8 million in October. This was $20.2 million or 52.2 percent above the prior year and $10.1 million or 20.8 percent above the estimate.