Joint Fiscal Office: $120 million identified for midyear budget adjustments; governor proposes property-tax hold
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Summary
The Joint Fiscal Office told the committee that recent forecasts and unallocated appropriations combine to about $120 million in funds under consideration in the FY2026 Budget Adjustment Act, with the governor proposing roughly $70–75 million be held for property-tax relief.
Emily Burns of the Joint Fiscal Office told the committee on Sept. 17 that the Budget Adjustment Act (BAA) is a technical vehicle the administration and Legislature use to reconcile revenue and spending mid‑year, not normally to craft new policy.
"For the Budget Adjustment Act, usually presented by the Commissioner of Finance early January," Burns said, describing how forecasts adopted in January are updated in July and again before the governor's budget speech in January. Burns said the July consensus revenue forecast shows about $77.2 million of additional general fund revenue for FY2026 relative to the adopted budget and that other items — including a vetoed appropriation and assumed reversions — raise available resources to roughly $120 million.
Why this matters: midyear changes shape what the state can reallocate before the next budget cycle and determine whether the administration handles smaller downgrades or the Joint Fiscal Committee must approve rescission plans.
Supporting details: Burns identified three main contributors to the larger figure: a $77.2 million upward revision in the general fund forecast (July consensus), a $10 million appropriation in Act H.91 that was vetoed and therefore unallocated, and increased assumed reversions (discretionary unspent appropriations moved back to the general fund). She said the administration is also proposing higher reversion assumptions, raising the reversion line from about $8 million to as much as $31 million while staff continue to review which reversions are one‑time versus recurring.
Burns noted the administration's proposed split of the money: the total pool (near $120 million) minus the $48.5 million the administration proposed to spend in the BAA would leave roughly $70–75 million the governor is recommending be held for property‑tax relief next year.
Council reaction and next steps: Committee members asked staff to provide spreadsheets and provenance for these numbers; Burns said JFO will produce a detailed spreadsheet showing sources and that the revenue forecast will be updated again in January before the governor's budget speech. No formal action or vote was taken during this briefing.
The committee plans to review the JFO spreadsheets and to revisit the numbers after the January forecast update.