State treasurer Ken Miller says gross receipts to Oklahoma’s treasury declined for the 18th consecutive month, and Oklahoma’s unemployment rate is higher than the national number for the first time in 26 years.
“We keep scouring through the data to find signs of an impending turnaround, but it’s just not there,” Miller said in a statement. “Some aspects of the August report aren’t as negative as in prior months – a few revenue streams have ticked up slightly – but we can’t yet point to a positive trend.”
Miller published figures Tuesday showing gross receipts were down by 4 percent compared to August 2015.
Miller did say two revenue sources showed a slight improvement – individual income and motor vehicle taxes were both 5 percent higher compared to this time last year.
The Oklahoma Employment Security Commission says the state’s unemployment rate of 5 percent is 0.1 percent higher than the national rate of 4.9 percent in July. The last time that happened? October 1990.
Read Miller’s Monthly Revenue Report
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