New website tracks state’s tax dollars

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Now you can take part in the same numbers game that California lawmakers play around budget time -- watching the state’s revenue figures in real time.

April 15 is Tax Day, and since the state is funded primarily by personal income tax revenues, the days leading up to next Thursday will help bring the state’s fiscal picture for the coming year into focus as Californians mail in their returns.

State Controller John Chiang allows you to monitor the state’s income tax receipts through a new income-tax tracking website, which provides a daily tally of this month’s personal income tax revenues.

The site also compares this year’s figures with last year’s numbers. Through April 1, personal income tax dollars are about $1 billion lower than they were last year. But overall tax receipts for the state are about $2 billion over what budget analysts projected for the year.

-- Anthony York