STATE OF CONNECTICUT
NANCY WYMAN COMPTROLLER	OFFICE OF THE STATE COMPTROLLER 55 ELM STREET HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT 06106-1775	MARK OJAKIAN DEPUTY COMPTROLLER

State Comptroller Nancy Wyman today projected the state's 2009 budget deficit at $1.017 billion, as an infusion of federal stimulus aid was offset by a continued decline in major tax revenues.

Wyman's estimate is about $222 million lower than last month's. That is due to a deposit of about $380 million of stimulus aid into the General Fund that was offset by steep drops in both the income tax and the sales tax.

"This unrelenting revenue slide continues to accelerate as we enter the last quarter of the fiscal year," Wyman said. "Unfortunately, as time goes on the options to deal with the deficit continue to shrink and put our $1.4 billion Rainy Day Fund in greater jeopardy."

The current projected deficit is based on a 2009 budget of $18.4 billion for the fiscal year that ends June 30. Wyman's estimate incorporates close to $650 million in deficit-mitigation steps approved by the General Assembly.

The income tax was expected to bring in $7.6 billion this year, but will likely fall nearly $1 billion short of that target. Along with the crash of the financial markets, Connecticut has lost more than 50,000 jobs over the past year, including more than 14,000 in February alone. That will result in the state paying out about $165 million more in tax refunds than was anticipated.

Collections of the sales tax are expected to decrease by about $387 million from original estimates, and the corporation tax is down by about $183 million.

Wyman's estimate is about $350 million higher than that of the Governor's budget office, due to the Comptroller's lower projections of income tax and sales tax receipts.

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