JOHN HANNA, AP Political Writer
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas officials are projecting that the state will collect nearly $178 million more in revenues than previously thought through June 2015.

The new revenue projections issued Thursday brighten the state’s budget picture and would appear to allow Kansas to avoid a budget shortfall through June 2016.

The previous revenue projections, issued in November, estimated that the state would collect about $5.9 billion in taxes and other revenues for the current fiscal year and again during the fiscal year beginning in July.

The new projections predict about $6 billion in revenues for each fiscal year.

But revenues during the current fiscal year would still run about 6 percent behind revenues during the previous year because of income tax cuts championed by Republican Gov. Sam Brownback.