Finance Minister Donna Harpauer. (Lisa Schick/980 CJME file photo)

By CJME

Provincial Deficit

Year-end figures show Saskatchewan’s deficit lower than expected

Jun 30, 2021 | 11:29 AM

Saskatchewan is reporting a $1.13-billion deficit for the 2020-21 fiscal year — a significantly lower number than was forecast.

The deficit announced by Finance Minister Donna Harpauer on Wednesday is $1.3 billion lower than was predicted in the budget.

“Our year-end financial statements show that Saskatchewan is in a much better fiscal situation than we anticipated as life and the economy start to get back to normal following the global pandemic,” Harpauer said in a media release.

“Moving forward, our focus continues to be on protecting Saskatchewan people, investing in vital infrastructure such as highways, hospitals and schools and helping our economy grow and recover.”

According to the government, revenues were higher than budgeted and expenses were lower than expected.

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While expenses for agriculture, education and environment and natural resources were lower than forecast, those were partly offset by greater-than-budgeted health expenses.

Total revenue of $14.52 billion was up $875 million from the budget projection.

Every revenue categories posted an increase over budget projections, except for taxation. Among the increases were transfers from the federal government to help fight COVID-19.

However, revenue was down $363 million from the 2019-20 fiscal year.

Expenses of $15.65 billion were $424 million lower than projected in the budget.

The total expense was $444 million higher than the 2019-20 fiscal year. The biggest increases were COVID-related costs in health, economic development, and community development.

“Saskatchewan people are resilient and our province has what the world needs as the global economy recovers from the pandemic,” Harpauer said. “We are seeing greater private investment recently, which demonstrates confidence in our province’s economy and solid fiscal foundation.

“We are seeing job growth that is the highest among provinces, and we are leading Canada’s economic recovery.”

-More to come.

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