Mississippi tax collections for October were behind estimates for the month by 6.74 percent, or $28.5 million, Gov. Haley Barbour stated yesterday. For the year to date, the first four months of the fiscal year, which began in July, are down 7.5 percent, or $111.7 million.

"It's clear we're continuing to feel the effects of the national recession, and as we deal with these shortfalls and plan for the next fiscal year, it's equally clear this cannot be business as usual," Barbour said in his statement. "There's nothing on the horizon that would indicate state revenues are going to recover anytime soon, and that means state government needs to do the same things families all around Mississippi are doing—set priorities and reduce spending."