ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, July 11, 1996 TAG: 9607110085
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-3 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: RICHMOND
SOURCE: Associated Press
The state ended the 1996 fiscal year with about $85 million more revenue than expected, Gov. George Allen said Wednesday.
Allen said tax collections for the year that ended June 30 will exceed the official estimate by about $50 million. The state also earned $17 million more than projected from lottery sales and made $17.1 million on the sale of its student loan portfolio to a private company.
The administration had expected a 6.1 percent increase in tax collections. Preliminary figures for June indicate the increase will be about 6.8 percent.
``For the fifth year out of the last six, our revenue collections were within 1 percent of the forecast,'' Allen said. ``This commendable accuracy has contributed significantly to Virginia's respected national reputation for sound and responsible fiscal management.''
Allen said $16 million will go into the state's ``rainy day'' fund. Also, the surplus will trigger the release of nearly $10 million for building maintenance, mostly for colleges.
That leaves nearly $60 million available for appropriation in the 1997 legislative session.
``A surplus is always good news,'' said Sen. Stanley Walker, D-Norfolk and co-chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. ``It's a small cushion, in the range of what we have seen the last two or three years.''
LENGTH: Short : 40 linesby CNB