Province Issues Budget Forecast Update

Government continues to hold the line on expenses, reports the first budget forecast update for the fiscal year, issued today, Sept. 22.

The province is forecasting a 2010-11 budget deficit of $203.2 million, $18.9 million less than the budget estimate.

Total revenues are forecast at $8.7 billion, $16.2 million less than the 2010-11 budget estimate. This is primarily because of lower than expected personal income tax and petroleum royalty revenues.

Total expenses are also forecast to be $35.3 million less than budgeted, at $8.9 billion, mainly because of lower than expected interest payments.

"We are continuing to do the hard work to get Nova Scotia back to balance," said Finance Minister Graham Steele. "While this is only the first forecast update since the budget, we're happy that we are where we expected to be, and that overall, we are moving in the right direction to achieve a surplus by 2013-14."

Additional appropriations for the departments of Education and Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal are included in the forecast update, in accordance with the new Finance Act. The appropriations are to permit spending of additional federal funds coming in for various government projects and initiatives.

The department also provided a correction today to the province's revenue projections that were reported in the 2009-10 Public Accounts, released in July.

The forecast update is available on the Department of Finance website at www.gov.ns.ca/finance .