New forecast released on September 26 estimates the 2023-25 state budget will reach $66.7 billion for the two-year cycle.
Last week, the Washington State Standard reported that legislators will have an additional $1 billion in resources when they return to Olympia in January. The 2024 session, which begins January 8th and will last only 60 days, is typically spent making minor budgetary adjustments to address emergencies, fix any mistakes that occurred during the 2023 regular session, and fund small projects. The new revenue includes an additional $265 million in tax collections that arrived after the June 30th forecast.
The nearly $1 billion in additional revenue does not include the additional funds brought in under the Climate Commitment Act’s carbon allowance auctions under the new Cap-and-Trade program, which has raised $1.28 billion thus far.
To read more about the September Economic Revenue Forecast, click here to read the Washington State Standard’s article, and here to review the official forecast documents.