FINANCIAL OVERVIEW
The following sections detail revenues and expenditures of the State's General
and Special Revenue Funds. In addition, for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1996,
other financing uses exceeded other financing sources for these funds by
$534.461 million.
Revenues
The State's most significant sources of revenue are its 5% retail sales tax, its
individual income tax (2.5% to 7.0% tax rates) and Federal grants. The following
schedule summarizes revenues of the General and Special Revenue Funds for the
fiscal year ended June 30, 1996 (expressed in thousands) and the amounts (expressed
in thousands) and percentages of increases (decreases) in relation to prior year
revenues:
Revenues
1995-96
Interest and Other Investment Earnings are higher than the previous year
because more cash was available, and these monies were invested in long-term
higher-yielding investments.
The increase in Contributions is due to an increase in the amount of Medicaid
disproportionate share matching funds received from hospitals.
The increase in Other Revenues is attributable to an increase in the amount of
matching funds for Federal grants provided by organizations outside State
government and refunds of prior-year Medicaid program expenditures.
Expenditures
The following schedule presents a summary of General Fund and Special
Revenue Funds expenditures for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1996, (expressed in
thousands) and the amounts (expressed in thousands) and percentages of increases
(decreases) in relation to prior year expenditures:
Expenditures
1995-96
Education expenditures increased again this year due to additional purchases
of school buses and other vehicles to transport children. The vehicles were purchased
with Capital Improvement Bond proceeds.
The increase in Resources and Economic Development expenditures is due
mainly to the availability of supplemental and capital reserve appropriations and to
increased emphasis on tourism and recreational safety. For example during 1995-96,
State agencies purchased new fire-fighting equipment and built and/or upgraded
recreational facilities.
The increase in the Intergovernmental category is due primarily to
implementation of the property tax relief initiative. The State expended
$207.791 million on property tax relief during 1995-96, the program’s first year. The
State also provided additional aid to local governments and school districts for other
programs during 1995-96.
Status of Fund Balances
GAAP-basis fund balances for the General Fund and Special Revenue Funds
at June 30 (expressed in thousands) for the last five years were:
The reserved component of fund balance represents amounts legally required
to be segregated and amounts that cannot be appropriated for future expenditure. The
unreserved component of fund balance is computed as total fund balance less reserved
amounts. Even for years in which the total fund balance in the General Fund was
positive, the unreserved component of fund balance was negative because the reserve
requirements exceeded total fund balance.
The designated portion of unreserved fund balance reflects tentative plans for
future use of available financial resources.