TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas collected $22 million more in taxes than expected this month. The Department of Revenue reported Friday that the state collected almost $310 million in taxes in February, when it anticipated taking in $287 million. The surplus is 7.7 percent. Revenue Department spokeswoman Jeannine Koranda says the state’s rebounding from last month’s $47 million dollar shortfall.
Koranda says a spike in state income tax refunds was partly responsible for the large shortfall last month. And, she says, income tax collections were especially strong in February. The numbers are good news for Republican Governor Sam Brownback and legislators, but they don't solve the state's budget problems. Officials must close a budget shortfall that had been projected at nearly $600 million for the fiscal year that begins July 1. Tax collections for the current fiscal year, starting in July 2014, still remain behind expectations, after falling short in December and January. During those eight months, the state collected $3.55 billion in taxes, when it expected $3.6 billion. The difference is $37 million, about 1 percent.
