BC Ended Fiscal Year With $5B Deficit as Wildfires, Lower Revenue Cut Into Budget

BC Ended Fiscal Year With $5B Deficit as Wildfires, Lower Revenue Cut Into Budget
Finance Minister Katrine Conroy tables the budget in the legislative assembly at the legislature in Victoria, on Feb. 22, 2024. The Canadian Press/Chad Hipolito
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British Columbia has ended the fiscal year with a deficit of about $5 billion, a figure boosted beyond the original budget forecast by wildfire expenses and what the government said was essential spending on “priority services.”

A statement said higher revenues from vehicle insurer ICBC were also offset by lower revenues from natural resources.