Mississippi’s August revenue collections exceeded the state estimate by $51,141,604, or 9.71 percent, the Joint Legislative Budget Committee said. The agency reported fiscal year-to-date receipts through August were $71,726,867, or 6.52 percent, above the revenue estimate.
The committee said General Fund collections for August were $53,023,485, or 10.10 percent, above the same month in the prior fiscal year. Lawmakers set the total revenue estimate for fiscal 2027 at $7,532,400,000, the report said.
The JLBC attributed the increase largely to higher sales, individual income and corporate income tax receipts. Sales tax collections in August were $12.3 million above the prior year, individual income tax collections were $20.9 million higher and corporate income tax collections were $5.6 million higher, the report said. The Medical Cannabis Excise Tax was the only line item that trailed year-to-date collections compared with the prior year.
The July and August collections combined were $59,707,651, or 5.36 percent, above the year-to-date revenue collections for the prior year, the committee said. The report provided the figures as early indicators for lawmakers overseeing the state budget.
The JLBC also reported that Mississippi’s unemployment rate fell 0.2 percentage point in July to 3.6 percent, compared with a national average of 4.1 percent. Nonfarm employment rose to nearly 1.2 million in July, a 0.3 percent uptick from the prior report, the committee said.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
