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New York’s June tax receipts dropped by $1.5 billion compared to last year

State tax receipts plummeted by $1.5 billion, or 17.3 percent, in June compared to the same time a year ago as New York continues to suffer from the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report. “As steps toward an economic reopening continue, state tax revenues remain far short of pre-pandemic levels,” said state Comptroller Tom …

State tax receipts plummeted by $1.5 billion, or 17.3 percent, in June compared to the same time a year ago as New York continues to suffer from the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report.

“As steps toward an economic reopening continue, state tax revenues remain far short of pre-pandemic levels,” said state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli in releasing the statistics Thursday.

“Currently, state spending is well below projections, as the Division of the Budget withholds some payments in response to fiscal uncertainty. All eyes are on Washington. New York and its localities badly need more federal aid if they are to respond fully to the COVID-19 crisis.”

June tax receipts were $475 million below projections from Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s budget office with shortfalls in personal income, consumption and business taxes, the report said.

The lower tax receipts are partially obscured by the fact that the deadline to file income tax returns was pushed back from April to July 15 because of the pandemic.

Still, other tax receipts from economic activity also sank.

For example, consumption taxes dropped by $1.1 billion for the first three months of the fiscal year — from $4.4 billion from April 1 to June 30 in 2019 to $3.3 billion this year.

Other business tax revenues also fell by $700 million — from $2.2 billion to $1.5 billion.

The impact of the shutdown triggered by the COVID-19 public health crisis was apparent as 2 million New Yorkers became jobless.

Unemployment insurance payments in June totaled nearly $13.5 billion, compared to just $135.6 million a year earlier.

The state did receive a massive jump in federal aid — much of it emergency funding to grapple with the pandemic. Federal funding to New York increased by $5 billion — from $17 billion to $22 billion during the first quarter compared to a year ago.

A person walks past a closed shop on the Coney Island boardwalk on July 1, 2020.AFP via Getty Images

DiNapoli noted that the Cuomo administration has curtailed projected spending by $6.3 billion for the first quarter.

New York officials are waiting to see if President Trump and Congress come up with a bailout package to provide relief to cash-strapped state and local governments whose tax bases have been decimated by the pandemic.

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