The Minnesota Department of Management and Budget released their updated February budget forecast for the state this week, providing lawmakers with Minnesota’s most current financial outlook. The projection indicates Minnesota has a $9.253 billion surplus over the next two years. While this forecast, as well as the estimates for the structural balance in FY 2024-25, remains positive, there is more uncertainty due to inflation and geopolitical conflict, which pose a risk to Minnesota’s economic outlook, they said.
This confirms that Minnesota has a historic budget surplus in our short-term future despite the many challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, new unforeseen challenges like inflation and the conflict in Ukraine have the potential to upend the global economy. Much of the improvement is seen in a one-time boost to our state’s bottom line and won’t last forever.
The Senate DFL Caucus remains committed to responsibly using part of this surplus in helping Minnesota families by lowering the costs of childcare and health care, rebuilding our infrastructure, supporting our schools, and delivering immediate direct relief for all our hard-hit frontline workers. We will also press for targeted tax relief for working families and seniors, while ensuring Minnesota remains in a strong position to address future challenges.
