News Story

Michigan’s Tax Collectors Are Hauling It In

State income tax alone projected to extract $674 million more this year

The state of Michigan’s largest sources of tax revenue are projected to bring in $2.1 billion more during the current fiscal year than they collected just two years ago, according to officials.

Twice a year, three separate agencies create a consensus estimate of how much tax, fee and other revenue will flow into and out of the Michigan Treasury in the coming year.

Representatives from the Senate Fiscal Agency, House Fiscal Agency and state Treasury Department created the most recent consensus revenue estimate last May, and are meeting today to update it.

In their May projections, the prognosticators saw annual revenue from Michigan’s major taxes increasing from $30.2 billion in 2015-16 to $32.3 billion in 2017-18. Those taxes include the state income tax, sales and use taxes, the 6-mill state education property tax, tobacco taxes and the lottery.

The Treasury and legislative fiscal agency officials predicted that the individual income tax will yield the largest revenue increase. They foresee collections jumping some $674 million, from $9.37 billion in the last fiscal year to $10.04 billion in the current one, which began on Oct. 1, 2017.

Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.