LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas built up a surplus of more than $240 million so far this year as the state’s revenue beat expectations last month, the state’s finance office said Wednesday.
The Department of Finance and Administration said the state’s net available revenue so far this fiscal year is more than $4.1 billion, which was $240.8 million above forecast and $275 million higher than a year ago.
The state’s net available revenue in January totaled $715.4 million, which is $188.7 million higher than forecast and $79.6 million more than the same month last year.
The state’s sales and individual income tax collections came in higher than forecast and more than January 2021.
The report is the last before lawmakers reconvene on Feb. 14 for a legislative session focused primarily on the state’s budget. Gov. Asa Hutchinson has proposed a $6 billion budget for the coming year that calls for increases for public schools, services for the developmentally disabled, and higher starting salaries for state troopers.
Lawmakers in December approved the largest tax cut plan in state history, which will eventually cost the state nearly $500 million a year.
