Current:Home > Contact-usNorth Carolina sees slight surplus this year, $1B more next year-InfoLens
North Carolina sees slight surplus this year, $1B more next year
View Date:2024-12-23 19:50:33
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s government should collect higher revenues during this fiscal year and next than what is projected in the current two-year state budget, according to a new forecast released Wednesday.
Economists for the General Assembly and Gov. Roy Cooper’s state budget office now predict collections will exceed revenue budgeted for the year ending June 30 by $413 million, or a 1.2% increase. And state coffers will bring in $1 billion more in the fiscal year starting July 1 than what was anticipated, or a 3% increase.
The budget law enacted by the Republican-controlled General Assembly had planned for a slight decline in revenue from this fiscal year to the next, in part due to tax cuts.
A legislative staff economist’s email to lawmakers attributes the upgrade to stronger than anticipated individual income tax collections and modestly higher sales tax collections. The memo cites low unemployment, wage growth, additional consumer spending and rising prices.
The new forecast now expects $34.14 billion in state operating revenues this fiscal year and $34.37 billion next year. The legislative economist warned that April 15 income tax collections can be difficult to predict and that a revised forecast was possible after detailed numbers are received in early May.
Still, Senate Majority Leader Paul Newton of Cabarrus County said Wednesday the report “is a reaffirmation that the GOP is leading our state in the right direction, balancing all the needs of residents, of educators, of job creators, of people that want to move somewhere they can achieve more — they’re coming to North Carolina.”
The news gives legislators more wiggle room to address financial needs as the General Assembly returns starting next week for this year’s chief work session.
The legislature’s primary job during the “short” session in even-numbered years is to adjust the second year of the two-year budget. Lawmakers already are being asked to address an upcoming loss of federal funds for child care and to fund more scholarships for K-12 students to attend private schools.
Cooper, a Democrat barred by term limits from running again this year, will propose his own budget adjustments. The governor has cited clean energy and biotechnology job investments and national accolades as evidence that his policies are benefiting the economy.
Cooper allowed the current two-year budget to become law without his signature, turning away from all he disliked within it because the proposal finalized the Medicaid expansion he had sought for years. Some budget provisions speed up individual income tax cuts.
veryGood! (52)
Related
- Texas now tops in SEC? Miami in trouble? Five overreactions to college football Week 11
- Father drowns to death while saving his 3 kids from river
- Dwyane Wade Shares How His Family's Cross-Country Move Helped Zaya Find an Inclusive Community
- Keep quiet, put down the phone: Bad behavior in blockbusters sparks theater-etiquette discussion
- Amazon Prime Video to stream Diamond Sports' regional networks
- Deep-red Arizona county rejects proposal to hand-count ballots in 2024 elections
- Legendary goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon announces retirement after 28-year career
- Hurry, the Ulta Sale Ends Tonight: Save Up to 50% On Olaplex, Philosophy, MAC, and More
- Inflation ticked up in October, CPI report shows. What happens next with interest rates?
- 'Potentially hazardous', 600-foot asteroid seen by scanner poses no immediate risk to Earth, scientists say
Ranking
- Hurricane-stricken Tampa Bay Rays to play 2025 season at Yankees’ spring training field in Tampa
- Francia Raísa Addresses Claim She Was Forced to Donate Kidney to Selena Gomez
- Christina Aguilera Makes a Convincing Case to Wear a Purse as a Skirt
- Kate Spade 24-Hour Flash Deal: Get This $330 Crossbody Bag for Just $69
- Olivia Culpo Celebrates Christian McCaffrey's NFL Comeback Alongside Mother-in-Law
- U.S aware Europeans evacuating citizens after Niger coup, but is not following suit
- MLB trade deadline winners and losers: Mets burning it all down was a big boon for Astros
- Museum in New York state returns remains of 19 Native Americans to Oneida Indian Nation
Recommendation
-
‘I got my life back.’ Veterans with PTSD making progress thanks to service dog program
-
Lizzo’s Former Creative Director and Documentary Filmmaker Speak Out Against Singer
-
How much money do you need to retire? Americans have a magic number — and it's big.
-
Lizzo says she’s ‘not the villain’ after her former dancers claim sex harassment
-
How Saturday Night Live Reacted to Donald Trump’s Win Over Kamala Harris
-
Body found in Rio Grand buoy barrier, Mexico says
-
Why Jessica Chastain needed a 'breather' from Oscar Isaac after 'Scenes From a Marriage'
-
Husband arrested after wife's body parts found in 3 suitcases