B.C. posts $704M budget surplus, say audited public accounts

An audited public accounting of British Columbia's financial records shows the province posted a surplus of more than $700 million in the 2022-2023 budget year.

British Columbia finished last fiscal year $700 million in the black, after forecasts swung between multi-billion-dollar deficits and surpluses.

Finance Minister Katrine Conroy said despite global uncertainty and inflation the province's bottom line showed a surplus due to economic and job growth and increased revenue from income taxes and natural resources.

She acknowledged the government's forecasts for 2022-2023 had been on an up-and-down ride for the past two years. A $5.5-billion deficit was predicted in February last year, before that was revised to a surplus of almost $6 billion, then downgraded to a $3.6-billion surplus.

The final audited public accounts for the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2023, released Wednesday, show a surplus of $704 million.

Conroy had forecast three years of consecutive deficits last March, with the current 2023-2024 budget projected to bring a deficit of $4.2 billion.

The minister said the government's most recent financial data will be released next month during a quarterly update.

“At that time, I'll be talking to you about some of the challenges B.C. continues to face, including our record wildfire season, global inflation, higher interest rates and slower global economic growth,” Conroy said. “We know the challenges are not over. There are more to come. The brutal wildfire season is a reminder of that.”