Hoeven: Revenue Projections Reflect Economic Growth

Hoeven: Revenue Projections Reflect Economic Growth

North Dakota's Economy Is Expanding, Diversifying

General Fund Status Statement Adobe Acrobat pdf icon (17kb pdf)
Preliminary Revenue Forecast Adobe Acrobat pdf icon (26kb pdf)

BISMARCK, N.D. - Gov. John Hoeven today released updated revenue projections for the 2005-2007 biennium and preliminary revenue projections for the 2007-2009 biennium. The revenue projections are prepared by Economy.com, the state's economic forecasting firm, and the North Dakota Office of Management and Budget.

North Dakota does a preliminary revenue projection during the summer. Another updated revenue projection will be done in November, prior to the legislative session for the budgeting process.

The revised projections, excluding transfers, for the 2005-2007 biennium indicate revenues of $2.038 billion, which is $258 million over the legislative forecast. To date for the biennium, actual revenue receipts are running $166 million over the earlier forecast. Growth is reflected across nearly all sectors.

Revenues for the 2007-2009 biennium are projected to be $2.139 billion, which is $101 million over the updated 2005-2007 forecast and $359 million over the 2005-2007 legislative forecast. The preliminary revenue projection for 2007-2009 reflects continued growth, but is conservative based on prudent financial management and drought conditions in the agriculture sector.

"Our aggressive economic development efforts are paying off," Hoeven said. "Clearly, North Dakota's economy is expanding and diversifying. That means not only more, better paying jobs for our people, but also revenue growth to invest in our priorities, including more funding for education, healthcare, law enforcement, state employee salaries, economic development and the things that help us build our quality of life.

"We've worked hard to grow and diversify our economy, and hold the line on taxes. That's what we've done, and now we're in a position to reduce the tax burden on our citizens by providing property tax relief, as well.

"Sales and use tax, and individual and corporate income tax showed the largest growth, but we saw substantial growth across all sectors, reflecting higher wages and greater disposable income," said Office of Management and Budget Director Pam Sharp.

The revised general fund projections do not include increased revenue from oil production. Deposits to the general fund from oil revenue are capped at $71 million; collections above that level are deposited to the Oil Trust Fund. Projected oil revenue deposits to the Oil Trust Fund are $180 million for 2005-2007 and $177 million for the 2007-2009 biennium.

http://www.governor.state.nd.us/media/news-releases/2006/08/060815a.html