Virginia’s General Fund revenue in March was 22.3 percent higher than March 2021, and year-to-date growth from Fiscal Year 2021–2022 was at 14.5 percent, ahead of the 9.2 percent required to meet predictions. That’s good news for the governor, who is trying to sell legislators on a slate of tax cuts that will decrease Virginia’s revenues.
“This revenue report shows strong signs that Virginia is growing. I am encouraged by the strength we’re seeing in our economy when you look at steady job growth, wages rising and median family income increasing in the Commonwealth,” Governor Glenn Youngkin said in a Thursday press release. “With this report confirming and exceeding our mid-session general fund forecast we continue to see evidence that there’s plenty of money in the system to provide critical tax cuts and needed relief for Virginians struggling with rising gas prices and record-high inflation on groceries and the products they need every day.”
Budget negotiators in the Virginia General Assembly are trying to create a compromise between the House proposal, which follows Youngkin’s requested tax relief, and the Senate proposal, which includes some tax relief but has a focus on one-time proposals that won’t impact revenues in future years. Anticipating that battle, when Youngkin took office he ordered his finance team to perform a mid-session review. The review added $1.25 billion to the FY 2022 forecast. Youngkin’s Thursday announcement shows revenue growth so far exceeding the growth required to meet that updated prediction.
Secretary of Finance Stephen Cummings warned that could change.
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Eric Burk is a reporter at The Virginia Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Virginia Capitol” by Skip Plitt – C’ville Photography. CC BY-SA 3.0.
