State tax collections are increasing at a significant pace. Over the past two months state tax collections are up nearly nine percent over what was taken in during July and August of last year. Personal income taxes are the primary reason for that increase.
For example, Iowa wage-earners paid nearly 242-million dollars in personal income taxes to the state. That’s nearly 17-million more than Iowans in the workforce paid last August. State sales tax collections went up less than two percent during the two-month period. Other tax payments — such as those paid by corporations — went up too, but they are a smaller segment of the over-all picture.
Earlier this year a panel of financial experts predicted state tax receipts will go up about four percent for the current state fiscal year. The fiscal year began July 1st.