state revenue

Businesses on SUNY campuses outside of New York City, and on certain designated private campuses, will be exempt from sales, property and corporate state taxes under a new initiative unveiled this week by New York Gov Andrew Cuomo. In addition, employees of these businesses will be exempt from income taxes. Eligible businesses must have a relationship with the host university related to its academic mission. The state will offer an additional 3 million square free of tax-free commercial space at New York private universities as part of the Tax-Free NY initiative.

In 2010, eight of 13 Western U.S. states currently maintain at least one tax exemption to encourage research and development according to a report from the Council of State Governments. In Trends in Western State Business Incentive, CSG looks at trends in the type and number of incentive business programs being used by 13 Western states — Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

States have been slow to recover from the recession, but amid all the doom and gloom surrounding the national economy, state general fund expenditure trends are moving in a positive direction. The Spring 2012 Fiscal Survey of States finds governors' recommended budgets show an overall increase in both general fund expenditures and revenues in fiscal year 2013. There are, however, significant challenges ahead for states, including increased expenditures, particularly Medicaid costs and enrollment, and reductions in federal funding.

A steady increase in personal income and sales taxes has helped state tax revenue in most states to surpass previous peak levels seen at the start of the recession. All regions of the country saw gains in the fourth quarter of 2011, with the exception of the Far West. The Plains had the largest gain, at 12.5 percent, followed by the Great Lakes states at 8.9 percent. However, tax collections for local governments are not faring as well mostly due to the lagged impact of falling housing prices on property tax collections. Findings are from a recent Nelson A.

An increase in tax receipts driven mostly by sales and income tax has improved the fiscal outlook for state and local governments in the near term. However, a new report from the Government Accountability Office warns of a widening gap between revenue and spending that is expected to grow significantly over time due to projected increases in health-related costs. Substantial policy changes at the state and local level are needed to maintain fiscal balance over the long term, the report finds. Read the report...

To bring more tech-related companies and jobs to Wyoming, Gov. Matt Mead's budget request for the new biennium adds $15 million to broaden an existing fund established last year for the recruitment of mega data centers. If approved by the legislature, the state would make available $30 million for both large-scale recruitment and to attract smaller technology companies. Anticipating flat growth over the next two years, the budget for 2013-14 proposes a slight reduction in ongoing spending from last biennium.

State fiscal conditions are likely to remain constrained in the coming year due to a weak national economic recovery and loss of federal stimulus funds, according to the latest Fiscal Survey of States. The survey points to some improvement in state finances in 2011 with 38 states reporting higher general fund spending in 2011 compared to FY10. However, 29 states still have lower general fund spending in FY12 compared to pre-recession levels in FY08 and total state revenues in 2012 remain below their 2008 levels by nearly $20.8 billion.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released their annual State and Local Governments' Fiscal Outlook and long-term projections paint a bleak picture. Even though both state and local government near-term fiscal outlooks have improved slightly since 2010, these sectors face long-term revenue declines that will necessitate "substantial policy changes" to stimulate revenue growth.

Voters disapproved of several tax-cutting measures appearing on statewide ballots across the nation — a good sign for states facing huge budget deficits. A proposal to roll back the sales tax from 6.25 percent to 3 percent failed to garner support in Massachusetts, saving the state's projected deficit from doubling in the next year, according to Stateline.org. Colorado voters also rejected tax-cutting measures, including an amendment to prohibit the state from borrowing.

Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle recently signed several economic development bills intended to spur job creation and high-tech development. The new legislation authorizes additional job creation tax credits, expands the state's enterprise zones program and establishes new incentives for angel investors. Key among the bills is Wisconsin's CORE Jobs Act, which creates and expands a number of tax credits, loan and grant programs for manufacturing, R&D and venture capital investment.