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State budget office projects $338 million FY2025 ending cash; governor proposes $5.65 billion general fund for FY2026
Summary
Legislative budget staff presented FY2025 cash reconciliation and the governor's FY2026 recommendations, showing a multi‑hundred‑million dollar structural surplus, proposed transfers to savings and targeted spending, and policy choices between tax relief and ongoing program increases.
At a Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee meeting, Keith Bybee, division manager for budget policy analysis at the Legislative Services Office, told committee members the state projects a $338 million ending general fund cash balance for fiscal 2025 and described the governor's FY2026 recommendation that totals roughly $5.65 billion in general‑fund appropriations.
Bybee framed the revenue story with the COVID‑era spike — general fund collections rose from about $4.0 billion to $6.2 billion over two years — and said Idaho's larger population has raised the baseline for tax receipts. He told the committee the new baseline is closer to $5.7 billion and that the governor's revenue forecast for FY2026 supports a structural surplus of roughly $700 million across the next three years.
The nut of the presentation was the policy choice the surplus creates: use one‑time funds for targeted projects, expand ongoing programs, or pursue tax relief. "You have a lot of choices,"…
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