State tax revenues were down 21 percent last month compared to the previous April.
A new report from state Controller David McCoy notes that tax revenues declined by $623.7 million in April of 2009.
That put the total decline for the year to date at $1.7 billion, or 11 percent.
The declining tax revenue is caused by a sluggish economy and high unemployment. It led to a negative balanced of $284.7 million in the general fund at the end of the month.
That deficit would have been higher but Gov. Beverly Perdue transferred $139.6 million from rainy day funds during the month and a Senate bill transferred another $250 million to keep the State Health Plan afloat, the report notes.
In turn, the deficit has led to slower tax refunds, with $224.6 million still unrefunded to state taxpayers as of May 8, according to the report.
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Un-due burden on state employees? Have you been paying attention at all to the real world? A eye- popping 11% of North Carolinians are out of work in the worst economy since the great depression. 21% decline in revenue... if North Carolina was a company there would be firings across the board. There are a lot of folks who would be 'glad' to trade places with the pampered state employee status. Be glad you have a job, be grateful, get perspective and pray we get through this period soon.