New York’s surplus has evaporated, state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said in a report for July that his office issued on Wednesday.
While all governmental funds receipts for the fiscal year 2011-12 increased $3.3 billion, or 8.4%, they were $351.5 million below first-quarter projections, “which largely evaporates the positive balance seen in tax collections through the first quarter,” DiNapoli said in a statement.
“New York’s recovering economy is struggling to reach cruising altitude, and the turbulence from volatile financial markets, a lackluster job market, a struggling housing sector, and political brinksmanship in Washington is creating additional drag,” he said. “Our fiscal margins are very tight, and we could go off course very quickly.”
The state’s finances basically consist of two main categories: general fund and all funds.
The general fund is the major operating fund of the state and accounts for all receipts not required by law to be deposited into another fund. All funds includes general, special revenue, debt service and capital projects funds, as well as funds from the federal government.
All funds spending of $40.6 billion through July was $1.2 billion, or 3.1% higher than last year and $75 million above financial plan projections. The total of other financing sources and uses, according to DiNapoli’s office, was $44.6 million below projections, leaving the state’s all-funds balance $469.8 million below projections through the first four months of the fiscal year. That was likely attributable to the timing of payments, including early tax collections.
The general fund ended July with a balance of $1.9 billion, just $9.4 million higher than projected in the financial plan. Through the first four months of the fiscal year, general fund receipts and disbursements were below plan projections by $61.5 million and $70.8 million respectively, DiNapoli said.
All three major credit agencies assign double-A ratings to New York.
