State Revenues not recovering

Our colleagues at the New Hampshire Center for Public Policy Studies report that state revenues are not rebounding, at least not yet.

For the twelve months preceding September 2009, New Hampshire revenues destined for the General Fund and Education Trust Fund were 6% less than for the twelve months ending a year earlier. The decline in state revenues is broad based, affecting all revenue sources, whether from business, consumer spending, or gaming.

In December 2007, when the latest national recession started, state revenues were growing by 7% annually, but the rate of growth in state revenues started to slow. By October 2008, total state revenues were decreasing compared to the previous 12 months.

The state government is funded mainly by specific taxes on meals and rooms, beer, tobacco, business profits, lottery sales, liquor sales, interest and dividends, and real estate transactions, to name just a few sources. Each revenue source has shown a unique pattern, but all are declining.