State banks extra $150M so far in 2011-12

North Carolina’s revenue collections through the first six months of the 2011-12 fiscal year are $150 million above earlier projections, officials said Tuesday.

About $60 million of that total was added in December, when corporate and franchise collections were 14.5 percent above budget, allowing them to end the first half of the year on target.

Individual income tax collections finished December about 2 percent above budget expectations and remain above forecast for the first half of the fiscal year.

Sales collections ended 3.8 percent above budget projections in December but slightly below budget for the first half of the year.

"We still have a long way to go, but these figures suggest that the top-rated business climate and educated, trained workforce we have built over the years is helping our recovery gain traction,” Gov. Beverly Perdue said in a statement.

State economists report that the recent economic data remains upbeat, but officials noted that the most volatile revenue sources are collected during the second half of the year.