Press Releases

SACRAMENTO—California revenues of more than $10.57 billion for September beat projections in the

2016-17 Budget Act Governor Jerry Brown signed in June by $151.6 million, or 1.5 percent, State Controller Betty T. Yee reported today.  Total revenues have outpaced expectations for two straight months after four months of shortfalls.

The fiscal year-to-date total of $24.55 billion in revenues is now just 0.1 percent below estimates.

Personal income tax (PIT) continues to represent the largest portion of General Fund receipts.  September PIT receipts of almost $7.14 billion exceeded budget projections by $127.7 million, or 1.8 percent.  Three months into the new fiscal year, California has collected total PIT receipts of almost $16.32 billion, topping estimates by $177.8 million—a difference of 1.1 percent.

Corporation taxes—which surge when quarterly payments arrive in March, June, September, and December—came in at just over $1.02 billion for September, which was 14 percent ($166.3 million) lower than anticipated.  By contrast, corporation tax receipts for August were only $72.8 million.  For the first three months of the fiscal year, total corporation tax receipts of $1.32 billion are $265.5 million less than predicted in the 2016-17 Budget Act—a shortfall of 16.7 percent.

Retail sales and use tax receipts of just over $2.00 billion beat expectations by $208.4 million, the largest margin of the “big three” revenue sources at 11.6 percent.  For the fiscal year-to-date, sales tax receipts of nearly $5.94 billion are just $25.8 million under estimates, or 0.4 percent.

The state ended the month of September with unused borrowable resources of more than $28.51 billion, which was $2.02 billion more than predicted in the 2016-17 Budget Act.  Outstanding loans of just under $10.53 billion were $50.4 million less than projected.  This loan balance consists of borrowing from the state’s internal special funds.

For more details, read the monthly cash report.  Read his month’s edition of the Controller’s California Fiscal Focus newsletter for region-to-region comparisons of tax liability. 

As the chief fiscal officer of California, Controller Yee is responsible for accountability and disbursement of the state’s financial resources. The Controller also safeguards many types of property until claimed by the rightful owners, and has independent auditing authority over government agencies that spend state funds. She is a member of numerous financing authorities, and fiscal and financial oversight entities including the Franchise Tax Board. She also serves on the boards for the nation's two largest public pension funds. Elected in 2014, Controller Yee is the tenth woman elected to a statewide office in California’s history. Follow the Controller on Twitter at @CAController and on Facebook at California State Controller’s Office.

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