TRENTON – The state is approximately $350 million behind projected revenues for the first seven months of fiscal year 2013, the state reported today.

The state budget was $13.43 billion compared to actual revenues of $13.08 billion so far this fiscal year, as the state awaits the governor’s fiscal year 2014 budget address next week. Revenues were down 2.6 percent actual compared to budgeted figures.

The state touted some good news for the month of January itself, with actual revenues of $3.057 billion, better than the budgeted figure of $2.982 billion.

Much of that was due to income and sales taxes for January, with income taxes up $101 million over projections, and sales taxes up $34 million.  Corporation business taxes, however, were down $41 million for January compared to budgeted expectations.

For the first seven months of FY13, sales and corporation business taxes remain a problem.

Sales taxes collected are at $4.14 billion compared to a budgeted figure of $4.29 billion.  And corporation business taxes are at $1.01 billion compared to a budgeted figure of $1.22 billion.

Income taxes so far this fiscal year are up, $6.13 billion actual compared to $5.93 billion budgeted.

Treasury stated that on a year-over-year basis, collections in January were up 18.3 percent for the income tax and 11.4 percent for the sales tax. The monthly income tax receipts exceeded targets that took into account the fact that January 2013 included an extra Wednesday of withholding tax payments compared to January 2012, Treasury stated.

“What is most striking,” said Charles Steindel, the Treasury’s Chief Economist, “is the resurgence of sales tax revenue, which appears to be a combination of a catch-up of spending deferred by Sandy, additional spending coming in line to make up for losses to Sandy, and the strengthening of the underlying trend in spending late last year.”