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Fiscal staff outline Burgum executive budget figures, oil revenue assumptions and key state funds
Summary
Legislative Council fiscal staff presented an overview of the Burgum executive budget, highlighting a large beginning general‑fund balance, proposal to raise the biennial oil tax transfer to the general fund, and projected oil price/production assumptions that drive the revenue forecast.
Alan Knudson, legislative budget analyst, and fiscal staff summarized the Burgum executive budget and the revenue picture that will guide committee deliberations.
The executive budget shows a proposed beginning general‑fund balance of $1,215,000,000, ongoing revenues of about $5,070,000,000 and transfers of $397,400,000, for a total of roughly $6.7 billion available for the 2025–27 biennium. Mr. Knudson explained that the recommended beginning balance includes an estimated $225,000,000 of “turn back” (unspent general‑fund appropriations returned at the end of the prior biennium) and a pre‑biennium transfer of $202,000,000 from the budget stabilization fund.
Brady Larson reviewed major revenue categories and oil and gas projections. He said the executive budget assumes oil prices of $62 per barrel in the first year of the biennium and production at about 1.1 million barrels per day, and he described the sensitivity: each $1 per barrel change in price changes oil and gas tax collections by about $78,000,000 for the biennium, and each 100,000 barrels per day of production changes collections by about $432,000,000.
Larson noted the Burgum recommendation would increase the biennial transfer of oil and gas extraction taxes to the general fund from $460,000,000 to $600,000,000, a $140,000,000 increase. He also described allocations of oil and gas collections to political subdivisions, the legacy fund and the state tuition fund (common schools trust fund distributions).
Staff discussed major appropriation totals in the executive budget: roughly $19.6 billion of all‑fund appropriations for 2025–27, including about $6.5 billion from the general fund and $13.1 billion from federal and special funds. Brady Larson and Levi Kaneshitski highlighted that four areas—Health and Human Services, K–12 education, higher education and corrections—account for about 80% of general‑fund appropriations.
Staff emphasized how volatile corporate income tax and oil revenues can be and described weekly and mid‑session budget reporting the committee will receive, including budget status and fiscal impact reports distributed on Wednesdays.
