Indiana’s new budget year is off to a strong start.

The State Budget Agency says the state collected $1.72 billion in General Fund revenue in July. That’s $22.5 million above the official forecast — about 1.3 percent. It’s $118.2 million more than the state collected in July of last year, a 7.4 percent jump.

Chief Economist Hari Razafindramanana released the numbers. They’re measured against the December 18th, 2025 revenue forecast.

Sales tax did the heavy lifting. Collections came in at $983.9 million, $6 million above estimate and 5.4 percent above last July. Individual income tax brought in $523.5 million, 2.2 percent above forecast. Withholding — the money taken out of Hoosier paychecks — was up 5.9 percent from a year ago. That’s the closest thing in this report to a read on the actual economy.

Corporate collections jumped 178 percent year over year. But look closer. July is not a quarterly payment month for corporations. The base was $18.3 million. The Budget Agency itself says September, December, April and June are the months that matter for corporate taxes.

The cigarette tax number comes with an asterisk, too. Collections hit $49.5 million, up 23.1 percent. The agency attributes the year-over-year difference to changes in law under House Enrolled Act 1001 from 2025. That’s a tax increase showing up in the numbers. Not more smokers.

Not everything went up.

Casino revenue missed again. Riverboat wagering taxes came in at $40.3 million — $5.2 million below estimate and down 10.6 percent from last July. Racino wagering also fell short of forecast. Together, the two lines came in $5.7 million light. Gaming has been sliding for years now, and lawmakers still treat it as a dependable revenue leg.

Interest earnings dropped as well. The state took in $34.4 million, down 22.2 percent from a year ago.

Here’s the number that didn’t make the press release.

The report also compares actual collections to the budget plan — the April 2025 forecast, adjusted for what the General Assembly actually passed last session. Against that benchmark, July revenue ran $86.8 million ahead. That’s 5.3 percent. The budget plan is the math behind the current two-year spending plan, the agency holdbacks, and the tax increases lawmakers approved in 2025.

One month does not settle that argument. Budget officials are careful to say so. The report notes revenues have to be read within the full fiscal year outlook and the balance of risks through fiscal 2027. Timing of payments, refunds, seasonality and federal policy all move these numbers around.

And the forecast the state is beating is not the forecast the budget was written on. It’s the December revision.

Fiscal year 2027 began July 1st and runs through June 30th of next year. It’s the second year of the biennium. Lawmakers return to the Statehouse in January, and if these numbers hold, expect a fight over whether Indiana was ever as broke as it said it was.

Next revenue report is due in early September.