Tax Revenues Edge Down

West Virginia revenues in August have come in $16.3 million shy of what state officials expected. The Department of Revenue says that’s due to drops in the state’s three largest tax base revenue sources: severance, personal income and consumer sales taxes. Severance tax revenue, which has nosedived amid the coal industry’s downturn and low natural gas prices, was $16.6 million below estimate and 21.6 percent below the prior year. Consumer sales tax money came in 0.4 percent below prior year receipts and nearly $4 million lower than anticipated. Personal income taxes collected 2.1 percent less than receipts this time last year. The totals fell $2.5 million short of expectations. Two months into the budget year, West Virginia is short of revenue estimates by $48.9 million.