December Revenue Forecast

The Joint Budget Committee received the December Revenue Forecasts this morning from Legislative Council and the Office of State Planning and Budgeting (OSPB).

Both forecasts show continued economic growth and these assumptions are assuming no changes to federal or state law.

For the FY 18-19 budget, the legislative council estimates that $747.9 million or 6.7% in revenue will be available to spend or save in the general fund than what is budgeted for FY 2017-18.  This forecast remains roughly unchanged from September forecast.

The Legislative Council forecast did look at the impact of the passage of the federal Tax and Jobs Act and project increased state revenue if enacted.

The OSPB forecast comes in higher than the legislative council forecast projecting $784.5 million to spend or save in the 18-19 budget.  Governor Hickenlooper is preparing a letter to the Joint Budget Committee to outline a plan for spending these additional funds with a focus on transportation and education.

There was significant discussion about the state’s declining severance tax revenues and both forecasts reflect a downgrade in projections.  The Department of Revenue estimates issuing an additional $72 million in refunds as a result of the BP decision over the next 18 months.

The next revenue forecasts will come out in March and those are important forecasts as they will determine the amount of the various budget triggers.

The full budget documents can be found at:

http://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/dec2017forecast.pdf

https://drive.google.com/file/d/17Hlm9TRbyISJk6ybh2k61euFf5pqE5A-/view