Proposed Budget - Fiscal Year 2025
On January 25, Delaware Governor John Carney presented his fiscal 2025 budget recommendation. Total recommended general fund appropriations are $6.49 billion, a 2.1 percent decrease compared to fiscal 2024 estimates. This includes the general fund operating budget of $6.07 billion (an 8.4 percent increase over fiscal 2024), in addition to $91.8 million for one-time items in a separate supplemental appropriation bill, $66.5 million for grants-in-aid, and $275.5 million in dedicated cash to support the governor’s $944 million separate fiscal 2025 capital budget. The budget is based on a general fund revenue forecast of $6.29 billion for fiscal 2025, which reflects 1.9 percent annual growth over fiscal 2024 estimates. Total general fund appropriations represent 98.0 percent of projected fiscal 2025 revenue plus the unencumbered prior-year cash balance of $331 million, meeting the two percent set-aside requirement. Additionally, the governor’s budget maintains a newer reserve, known as the Budget Stabilization Fund, at $410.1 million. The state’s traditional rainy day fund, the Budget Reserve Account, has a projected balance of $341 million. The state’s cumulative cash balance, including these reserves, encumbered balances of $1.22 billion, and an unencumbered cash balance of $155 million, is estimated at $2.12 billion for fiscal 2025.