Oklahoma's 10.2% decline in February revenues from last year's collections is not a concern, Finance Secretary Preston Doerflinger said last week.
"This February we had an anomaly with an estimated $12 million in personal income tax refunds that would normally have been made in January if taxpayer filings had not been delayed because of the late deal in Washington to avert the so-called fiscal cliff," Doerflinger said.
The monthly total of general fund revenues of $254.6 million last month was down $28.9 million from February 2012.
Individual income tax collections in February totaled $18.3 million, a drop of almost 43% from 2012. Corporate tax collections of $885,000 were down 30.2%.
"February's figures are not as alarming as they look when you consider how income tax remittances can often vary greatly from month to month," Doerflinger said.
The steady decline in natural gas production is also a problem, he said, but there are signs that natural gas is recovering.
"Economists are painting a bright long-range future for the natural gas industry, with some predicting an increase in demand and more favorable pricing," Doerflinger said. "We look forward to that day."
The natural gas production tax brought in $10.4 million last month, down 45% from February 2012. The state tax on crude oil production generated $25.7 million, a drop of 26% from last year.
