NATION IN BRIEF : NATIONWIDE : Tax Figures Fail to Signal Recovery

There were no signs of an economic recovery in the latest batch of tax revenue figures from state governments, according to a study. California showed a 4.9% drop in revenues as overall second-quarter tax revenues rose a meager 2% over the same period of 1990, the Center for the Study of the States reported. If tax rates had not been raised in some states last year, the nationwide revenues would have declined by 1%, the center said. The center, based at the State University of New York in Albany, found New England to be the hardest-hit region, with state tax revenues declining by a sharp 8.3% between the second quarters of 1990 and 1991.