The B.C. government's audited financial statements from the fiscal year ending March 31 show that, surprisingly, the deficit is lower than forecast by almost $2 billion.
The 2024/25 budget had estimated the province would be in the hole by about $7.9 billion. This estimate was increased several times, eventually landing at a forecast of roughly $9.1 billion.
According to an audit of actual spending released on Thursday (Aug. 7), the province ended the fiscal year with a deficit of approximately $7.35 billion, having spent a total of nearly $91.4 billion.
Part of the reason for the deficit adjustment is that total revenue was about $2.5 billion higher than expected. This is primarily due to increases in tax revenue, which would have been even higher if not for a decrease in revenue from natural resources.
Spending also increased, offsetting gains, and was roughly $1.9 billion over budget.
This deficit is still $2.5 billion higher than the previous year, when the government spent roughly $5 billion more than it brought in.
The province's total debt is now almost $133.9 billion, which is more than $10 billion than estimated in the budget.
The debt exceeded estimates despite the lower-than-projected deficit, due to the provincial government's decision to take advantage of favourable rates to borrow extra money ahead of time for this fiscal year.
More to come.
