Miss. tax collections down in Jan.

The Clarion-Ledger, 2/2/9

Mississippi revenues in January were better than the previous month, but most of the state’s tax collections remain sluggish.

The state collected a total of $362 million for the general fund in January, according to the state Tax Commission. That’s $24 million, or 6.2 percent, below what was anticipated.

Total tax collections in December 2008 were 9.5 percent below estimates.

The January totals do not include fees collected by other state agencies. Those numbers are expected to be released this week.

Most of Mississippi’s revenue is from sales taxes. The state collected $10 million less in January than it did in the same month a year ago.