Another Year of Strong Growth in Alabama Tax Collections
The thriving economy produced another year of surging tax collections for Alabama’s General Fund and Education Trust Fund (ETF), the two primary accounts that provide state funding for government operations. The better-than-projected results put the state in a good position to meet current obligations and weather a downturn should it arise. It also appears that […]
Surging economy boosts Alabama 2018 General Fund and ETF Revenues
Thanks to a booming economy, Alabama saw significantly increased revenue to both the General Fund and the Education Trust Fund (ETF) in 2018, with collections far exceeding expectations. By the September 30 end of the 2018 fiscal year, collections for the state General Fund were up 4 percent or $76 million over FY2017, bringing in […]
Lackluster 2016 Receipts to General Fund and ETF
Both the accounts that pay for state government operations, the General Fund and the Education Trust Fund (ETF), ended the 2016 Fiscal Year basically flat when compared to the previous year, a sign that the state’s struggles to balance budgets will continue in the future. What would have been a moderately healthy year of receipts to […]
General Fund Sputters Along
Despite the healthy economy, the state’s General Fund posted its usual sputtering performance in 2015, according to the state’s year-end revenue collection reports. The General Fund, which supports the non-education functions of state government, received about $1.8 billion in 2015, up from approximately $1.7 billion in 2014. However, that total includes a $105 million transfer […]
A Look at 2014's Anemic General Fund Performance
The final tallies are in for fiscal year 2014 collections to the state’s General Fund. The results are, as usual, lackluster. Collections from the assortment of taxes that feed the Fund grew by just 1.03 percent over 2013. That’s pretty typical performance for the General Fund, and that anemic growth is the root cause of […]
Alabama’s Ailing General Fund
When the new legislature convenes in 2015, it will face an old problem: a shortfall in the state’s $1.8 billion General Fund account. This time, state leaders are expecting as much as a $200 million gap between revenues available for fiscal 2016 and the appropriations needed to maintain services. Any such imbalance between revenues and […]