Washington’s economy is officially out of recession  — and state revenue is even growing a tiny bit.

But the recovery, mirroring the national scene, is “painfully slow” and “tepid at best,” said a new Columbus Day report released by the state Economic and Revenue Foecast Council.

The state’s chief economist, Arun Raha, announced that tax collections for the past month have grown $2.5 million above the September forecast.  In a two-year budget of $30 billion, that’s peanuts, of course, but at least the number is heading the right direction for once.  Governor Gregoire and the Legislature have dealt with a $12 billion shortfall in recent sessions, Gregoire recently ordered across-the-board cuts, and more cutbacks are coming in the new year.

Raha noted that the Great Recession has been declared over at the national level, and added this:

“After analyzing a number of Washington economic indicators, we believe that the recession in Washington’s economy has also ended. … The fact that the recession in Washington is over does not mean the economy has returned to health; it only means that the economy has stopped shrinking and returned to growth, however modest.”

That’s what passes for good news these days.