OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Washington state’s tax collections are down again, swelling the budget deficit and raising the possibility of a special legislative session.
Thursday’s revenue forecast shows a big drop in expected tax income for the state over the next two years.
That adds about $385 million to the hole in the current year’s budget, which runs through June 2011. Gov. Chris Gregoire already ordered spending cuts to address the problem, but it won’t be enough to fill the new gap.
The forecast also says Washington will collect about $810 million less than previously hoped for the next state budget, which lawmakers will write in the 2011 legislative session.
The 2011-2013 deficit is now pegged at about $5.7 billion, out of a roughly $33 billion general fund budget.
