WASHINGTON, Nov. 1 (UPI) -- Personal income increased $0.8 billion, or less than 0.1 percent, and disposable personal income decreased $86.7 billion, or 1.1 percent, in September, according to a Thursday release from the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Personal consumption expenditures decreased $130.2 billion, or 1.8 percent. In August, personal income increased $6.8 billion, or 0.1 percent, DPI increased $145.0 billion, or 1.9 percent, and PCE increased $23.3 billion, or 0.3 percent, based on revised estimates.
Disposable personal income -- personal income less personal tax and nontax payments -- was affected by several special factors in addition to the September 11 attacks. The largest of these factors was advance refund checks sent to taxpayers beginning in July as part of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001, which lowered net income tax payments. In addition to the refund checks, the Act lowered income tax withholding rates beginning in July.
The July change in DPI was also boosted by an increase in transfer payments, which reflected one-time payments to correct for underpayments of benefits associated with an error in the indexing for social security and supplemental security income benefits.
