News

July 18, 2008

Nanticoke revenues for 2008 short of estimates

Nanticoke has received less than half of anticipated $2.4M in earned income tax revenue.

SHERRY LONG slong@timesleader.com

NANTICOKE – City Council learned a bit more about the state of the city’s finances at Wednesday’s meeting.

The city generated $86,011 in revenue for June after all expenses were paid, according to Finance Director Holly Quinn. An income statement of the city’s general fund shows the city’s revenue for the first six months of the year is $560,250 after paying all the bills.

When city and the Pennsylvania Economy League officials worked to develop the 2008 budget, they anticipated the city would receive $2.4 million in revenue just from earned income taxes.

So far this year, the city has received less than half of that – or $1,050,223 – in earned income tax revenue, according to the income statement.

“Our biggest concern at this point is our earned income tax revenue. Our projections haven’t been anywhere near where we anticipated,” Quinn said.

The city’s payroll taxes are collected through Berkheimer Associates. During a meeting with a Berkheimer representative last month, Nanticoke officials discovered the city faces a $600,000 shortfall in earned income tax revenue because payments are being made on a quarterly basis, instead of monthly.

Councilman Jon Metta, who is responsible for overseeing the city’s finances, said PEL is developing cash flow projections for the city. He acknowledged, “There will be a shortfall, but we don’t know exact figures.”

Once the projections are completed, city officials will meet with PEL and the city’s accountant in the coming weeks to discuss how to budget for the rest of the year.

City Administrator Kenneth Johnson said the city “will take a hard look at what is happening here and draw up a plan to deal with the shortfall we might have.”

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