‘In the good old summertime. [canoe] (LOC)’
courtesy of ‘The Library of Congress’
Good news, everyone. We’re up a creek, but at least we’ve got a paddle. That was the news from the CFO’s office this afternoon, as Dr. Gandhi released the latest revenue numbers for 2011 predictions, and set a final estimated deficit for the FY2011 budget. The deficit, which had been rumored to be in the $600M range, is actually closer to its original projection at $322M. That’s both good and bad news. The cuts in spending, and the consideration of an increase in income tax, will still have to be examined, but the situation isn’t nearly as dire as it was suspected to be.
The increase in revenues came from four sources: real property (due in large part to the strong commercial real estate market in 2010), sales & excise taxes (4% annual growth!), Individual/Business Income, and Deed-related taxes (due to growth in high-value home sales). The letter also includes some nuggets: the private sector in DC added 15,433 jobs last quarter, but unemployment rolls grew by 2,000 people. Wages were up, at 5.4% growth year-over-year, more than double the national growth rate.
I live and work in the District of Columbia. I write at We Love DC, a blog I helped start, I work at Technolutionary, a company I helped start, and I’m happy doing both. I enjoy watching baseball, cooking, and gardening. I grow a mean pepper, keep a clean scorebook, and wash the dishes when I’m done. Read Why I Love DC.
