Happy (Fiscal) New Year!

July 1 starts a new fiscal year for Maryland state government. And Maryland’s finances are in pretty fair shape. Not perfect, but pretty fair.

The state begins the new fiscal year with about $320 million in its general fund (Maryland's checking account). There’s also over $700 million in the Rainy Day Fund (our savings account).

The state’s budget is balanced for the year. The estimated revenues plus the beginning fund balance more than cover the budgeted expenditures. 

These expenditures pay for local schools, college education, healthcare, the men and women who keep our communities safe. They help our communities now and strengthen Maryland’s economy for the future. To see some of the ways the state budget helps us and our neighbors, check out this blog entry at Moving Maryland Forward Network.

Although the legislature deadlocked at the end of the regular session, they returned for a special session and enacted a responsible balanced budget 45 days before the end of the fiscal year. There are many states that routinely start the fiscal year without an enacted budget in place. And then there’s Congress….

All three national credit rating agencies continue to give Maryland their top “Triple-A” ratings. These evaluations reflect the state’s economy and the characteristics of the bonds, along with Maryland’s sound financial management practices.

There are certainly challenges ahead. Next year, Maryland will face another revenue shortfall, along with a need to provide funding for transportation infrastructure. We have ongoing unmet needs in education, healthcare, services for children, job training, and other areas. So there’s more work to do.

We can meet these challenges. Governor O’Malley and the legislature have shown they can reach a responsible compromise that keeps the state’s finances on track and protects our investments in education, infrastructure and the rest. 

I promise to resume my usual gloom and doom budget talk soon enough. But for now: it’s New Years. It’s a time to recognize some of the really good things about our state budget. It's time to be hopeful about the future. Happy New Year, Maryland!