Gumbs apologizes to the public for late budget, pivots to 2027 budget targeted for September 8

GREAT BAY--Finance Minister Marinka Gumbs said Government is targeting September 8, 2026, for submission of the 2027 Budget to Parliament, as she acknowledged during Thursday’s public meeting on Budget 2026 that the current budget reached Parliament significantly later than it should have.

Gumbs said the Council of Ministers had already approved the 2027 Budget on June 25, 2026, after which it was submitted to the Committee for Financial Supervision (Cft) and the Department of Legal Affairs for further review. Any comments resulting from those reviews are expected to be incorporated before the budget proceeds through the remaining stages.

At the opening of her presentation Thursday, Gumbs openly acknowledged that Parliament was considering Budget 2026 during the third quarter of the very year the budget is intended to govern. “I do so knowing fully well that we are already in the third quarter of this fiscal year and therefore this presentation is long overdue,” Gumbs told Parliament.

She apologized for the delay and said that although several factors contributed to it, she accepted responsibility as Minister of Finance.

The preliminary 2027 figures presented by the Minister project total revenues of approximately Cg. 670 million and expenditures of approximately Cg. 662 million, resulting in a projected surplus of about Cg. 8 million.

Revenue for 2027 is projected to increase by approximately Cg. 23 million compared with 2026, while expenditures are expected to increase by approximately Cg. 26 million. Gumbs said much of the difference from the multi-year figures contained in Budget 2026 results from updated information received from the ministries during preparation of Budget 2027, particularly concerning funding from the Temporary Work Organization and the Trust Fund.

Taxes are expected to remain the largest source of Government revenue in 2027, projected at approximately Cg. 497 million, or about 74 percent of total revenue. License revenues are projected at approximately Cg. 25 million, fees and concessions at Cg. 65 million, while other revenues, including project contributions, are projected at approximately Cg. 84 million.

Gumbs stressed that the projections were prepared using what she described as a prudent approach. Revenue-generating measures that are not sufficiently advanced have deliberately been excluded from the figures.

Among them is the proposed Tourist Tax, which Government estimates could generate approximately Cg. 18 million annually. The Minister said the anticipated revenue has not been included in Budget 2027 because the enabling legislation has not yet completed its passage through the required legislative process.

Funding connected to the TWO program has similarly only been incorporated for the period currently confirmed. Gumbs said the present arrangement is expected to continue through the first quarter of 2027, while discussions regarding a possible extension remain ongoing. Any additional revenues and corresponding expenditures would be incorporated into future budget updates if an extension is formally agreed.

The Finance Minister contrasted the progress on Budget 2027 with the lateness of the 2026 Budget currently before Parliament.

At the same time, Gumbs argued that the late submission should not be viewed simply as an isolated failure in the 2026 process. She described it as the result of longstanding structural and administrative weaknesses that have affected budget preparation across successive governments.

The Minister said St. Maarten has for years struggled with financial-cycle deadlines and that statutory timelines for submission of national budgets have too often been treated more as targets than firm legal obligations.

According to Gumbs, Government has now begun implementing internal measures aimed at changing that approach and ensuring that Budget 2027 and future budgets are prepared with greater discipline and predictability.

She described the progress already made on the 2027 Budget as an important step in breaking that cycle.

“This is no small achievement, particularly in light of the long-standing delays that have historically characterized the budgetary process,” Gumbs said, adding that the progress reflects Government’s commitment to restoring greater timeliness, discipline and predictability to public finances.

The planned September 8 submission means Parliament could receive Budget 2027 only weeks after completing its consideration of Budget 2026, highlighting the unusual overlap created by this year’s delayed process.

Gumbs nevertheless presented the accelerated 2027 timetable as evidence that Government intends for the current situation not to become the norm.

She said the broader objective is to establish a more reliable budget cycle in which Government meets its constitutional responsibilities, Parliament receives financial proposals within the required timeframe and the country can plan spending and policy priorities before the beginning of the fiscal year they are intended to cover.

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