Maine's budget stabilization fund has reached a record high and the maximum under state law after the state finished the 2023 fiscal year with a $141 million surplus.
The stabilization fund, also known as the rainy day fund, is used to backfill revenue shortfalls during an economic downturn. And at nearly $970 million, it's as flush as it has ever been.
The surplus also means that priority initiatives outlined in the so-called cascade will also receive a boost in funding, including a total of $65 million to various affordable housing programs that the Legislature added to the cascade this year.
Funding for road and bridge projects will also see a modest increase in funding as a result of the surplus.
