Kansas saw $62M in unexpected tax revenues in Jan.

TOPEKA, Kan. -- Kansas revenue officials say the state collected $62 million more in taxes than expected in January.

A preliminary report Thursday from the Department of Revenue says January's tax collections totaled nearly $635 million _ almost 11 percent above an official forecast for the month.

The report also says the state collected about $3.7 billion in the first seven months of the current fiscal year. That's $95 million more than officials had expected.

January's larger-than-expected collections are likely to dramatically shrink the projected $267 million gap between anticipated revenues and current spending commitments for the fiscal year that starts July 1.