Legislative analysts present FY2025–26 budget outlook showing $700 million structural surplus and $338 million projected year-end cash

Keith Bybee, division manager for budget policy analysis at the Legislative Services Office, briefed the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee on the state's FY2025 and FY2026 budget outlook, describing revenue projections, planned transfers, and the governor's recommended appropriations.

Bybee said the state's revenue history shows an unusual COVID-era spike and a new higher baseline driven in part by population and personal-income growth. He noted the governor's recommendation projects general fund revenues and expenditures that preserve what he described as "a structural balance" of about $700 million over the short term. "If a budget is a statement of your values, your previous legislatures have done you a big favor," Bybee told the committee.

The nut graf: the governor's recommended general fund picture for FY2025 and FY2026 leaves the state with one-time and ongoing choices: maintain the structural surplus for tax relief, direct funds to ongoing programs, or use cash for one-time spending. Bybee highlighted the cash…