OLYMPIA — Economic forecasters who had projected Washington's economy would start to accelerate in the months ahead are growing more pessimistic, warning Thursday that the risk of slipping back into recession has grown significantly.

The state's chief economist, Arun Raha, said the economy is struggling against headwinds caused by debt battles in the United States and Europe.

He had previously forecast that those issues would only cause short-term troubles, but he expects them to continue to damage consumer confidence and suppress the state's recovery.

"It takes a lot to turn me pessimistic, but I have turned pessimistic now," Raha said.

The Economic and Revenue Forecast Council said state tax collections are already 1.3 percent below a forecast issued in June, and Raha expects that gap to widen.

The June forecast projected the state would have a $163 million buffer for the two-year budget cycle, but the weak tax collections have already wiped out about $30 million of that.

Raha will issue a new revenue forecast in September that lawmakers will watch closely in case it forces them back to Olympia to reassess the budget.

Gov. Chris Gregoire has requested state agencies prepare for the possibility of more budget cuts, asking them to ready plans to trim spending by 5 and 10 percent.

The state had an unemployment rate of 9.2 percent in June.

Forecasters no longer have any projection of when Washington's economic recovery will be able to regain momentum. The debt troubles in Europe appear to be spreading, and the consequences of the United States' credit rating downgrade by Standard & Poor's could be lasting.

Raha said the past two weeks have drastically changed the outlook for the U.S. economy.

"It's been like a wild roller-coaster ride," he said. "Not a very fun one, I might add."