The monthly state revenue report shows a dip in receipts in March, both against last year and below the forecast.

Here’s the full report. Does it justify all the designs on revenue growth to pay for income tax and capital gains tax cuts, new expenses such as allegedly providing alternative means to obtain IDs for poor people disenfranchised by the Voter ID law, etc.?

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The analysis is mixed, but not so good on the two most important elements of state income:

March Net Available General Revenues total $346.4 million, $9.9 million or -2.8 percent below last year and $15.1 million or -4.2 percent below forecast.

Results were mainly driven by the combination of rebound in income tax refunds this month and collections below forecast and below year ago levels in the two largest sources of general revenue.

Sales and Use tax collections were below forecast by $9.3 million or -5.2 percent and individual income tax was also below forecast by $6.6 million or -2.9 percent. These two sources of revenue account for over 84 percent of gross collections in the annual forecast.

Corporate Income tax collections exceeded the forecast in March and pulled even with the forecast year to date. Monthly collections in corporate income are a volatile component of general revenue.

UPDATE: Speaking of tax cuts, Ernie Dumas has another good column this week for the reality-based community on the simple absurdity of Republican tax cut plans. The facts show that tax cuts don’t create prosperity. Time and again. In Arkansas or the U.S. But House Speaker Davy Carter’s tax break for people making more than $5 million in capital gains will create some prosperity one place — in his campaign treasury for a future run for governor.

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