The Executive Budget was presented this morning to the House Finance Committee.
The State ended the fiscal year 2024 with a general revenue surplus of $521 million. All but $67 million of that surplus has been appropriated. The Lottery Funds were in a $113 million surplus and about $79 million have not been appropriated.
The State’s fiscal year 2025 revenues are $28 million above the January 2025 estimates. It is anticipated that fiscal year 2025 year-end revenue collections will be on target. Lottery revenues are ahead of estimates.
The Governor recommends a balanced budget for fiscal year 2026, in doing so a $397 million budget gap will be closed. A budget gap was explained as a budgeting tool. It is not a deficit.
Public Employees’ Retirement System is fully funded. The Teachers’ Retirement System is 83 percent funded at the end of fiscal year 2024.
The rainy-day funds are not being tapped into for fiscal year 2026. The rainy-day fund is over $1.3 billion.
A 6-year plan has been drafted to improve the budget gap by over $900 million for fiscal years 2026 through 2030. The Governor’s recommended fiscal year 2026 budget is $5,959,179. For the 6-year plan, projected budgets are as follows: FY27 – $$6,304,179; FY28 – $6,470,621; FY29 – $6,640,668; and FY30 – $6,820,643.
