Budget Provision Could Delay Corporate Rate Cut

RALEIGH — A new round of tax cuts in the $21.735 billion state budget for 2015-16 may prevent the state from lowering the corporate income tax rate to 3 percent in 2017 because tax collections are projected to be $74.7 million lower than a revenue target set two years ago. Even so, legislative leaders say they are confident that the state will collect enough revenues to trigger a second cut in the corporate income tax that would take effect Jan. 1, 2017.