December 16, 2025 |News, Office of MA State Treasurer, State of MA

State Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg’s FY27 Consensus Revenue Hearing Remarks

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From the Office of State Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg: Today, State Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg joined the Massachusetts’ House and Senate Committees on Ways and Means for a hearing to discuss the state’s revenue projections and the fiscal outlook for Massachusetts. Treasurer Goldberg provided testimony regarding how departments and agencies within Treasury performed at extraordinary levels and how the Treasury will continue to provide critical services in the next fiscal year.

Below are the Treasurer’s remarks prepared for delivery:

Introduction

Secretary Gorzkowicz, Chairman Michlewitz, Chairman Rodrigues, and members of the Committee –
 
I always appreciate the opportunity to have an open conversation with you about our revenue projections and the fiscal outlook for Massachusetts.

Debt Management

Let’s start by discussing the Stabilization Fund. It has grown to a strong $8.1 billion. 
 
We estimate that Commonwealth will earn roughly $252 million in interest on the Stabilization Fund in FY27, assuming a conservative 3% rate of return. This is down from a projected $320 million in FY26. The accrued interest allows us to access federal matching funds and reduce debt service.   
 
Our rainy-day fund helps us prepare for challenging times, mitigating the impact of an economic downturn or revenue shortfall. Its management is also a key factor in our state’s credit rating. Our AA+ bond rating enables us to borrow money to repair our roads, build and renovate schools, and so much more.
 
In this time of uncertainty, it is imperative that we continue to consider the impact of potential withdrawals from the rainy-day fund on our credit rating. Close collaboration and constant communication will remain critical. We must have a clear plan for if and when we use the funds and subsequently how those funds will be replaced.
 
Through our partnership on the Stabilization Fund and Long-term Liability Task Force, we have begun to establish best practices for the use of our rainy-day fund. I look forward to the recommendations of the task force which are expected in the coming weeks.

Massachusetts State Lottery

Now turning to everyone’s favorite, the Lottery!

The Lottery had another solid performance in Fiscal Year 2025. Total revenues were just shy of the $6 billion mark – $5.96 billion to be exact – and the Lottery’s net profits topped one billion dollars for the fifth consecutive year, returning $1.067 billion to our cities and towns. We paid out over $4.4 billion in prizes, with a record setting prize payout percentage of 74.07 percent, and our retail partners received over $340 million in commissions and bonuses.

The Lottery is currently on track to meet its projection of $1.050 billion in net profit for Fiscal Year 2026, despite economic headwinds and continuing impacts from the competitive marketplace.

Lotteries across the country are facing increasing unpredictability of multi-state game sales driven by large jackpots. In Fiscal Year 2025, sales of jackpot driven games Powerball and Mega Millions experienced a combined $159 million decrease. Fiscal Year 2026 is off to a more promising start, with two Powerball jackpot runs reaching the $1 billion mark.

Looking forward to Fiscal Year 2027, based on current trends, the Lottery projects a net profit of $1.025 billion.

Last and certainly not least, we are looking forward to implementing iLottery, which will help us compete in an increasingly saturated market. While retail Lottery profits will continue to support cities and towns, iLottery dollars will go toward funding childcare initiatives aiming to improve affordability and accessibility.

The Lottery is on track to go live with a full assortment of online offerings in the summer of 2026. With this timeline, we expect revenue from iLottery to begin in Fiscal Year 2027.

Based on our initial projections, Massachusetts can expect over $70 million in net profit from online sales in the first year of operation. That number quickly scales to over $180 million by year three, over $230 million in year five, and almost $360 million in year ten.

PRIM

At Mass PRIM, our carefully constructed portfolio continues to deliver in both strong and weak markets. It now sits at $121.1 billion, the highest balance in the fund’s history, despite persistent geopolitical and economic crises.  
 
The Fund continues to perform very strongly, with a trailing one-year gain of 9.6%, net of fees, through September 30, 2025.  The trailing 3-year, 5-year, and 10-year returns are also strong, well above the 7% actuarial target rate of return.
 
To put our consistent growth into perspective, the Fund totaled $60 billion when I became Treasurer. It has since grown by 101.8%, all while providing approximately $1 billion in benefits to retired public servants on an annual basis.
 
The Fund also continues to advance its work with diverse investment managers through the FUTURE Initiative, created to implement the Investment Equity legislation passed in 2021. As a result of this effort, PRIM’s allocation to firms owned and operated by women, people of color, and those with disabilities is now more than $16 billion [more than 13%].
 
PRIM’s Stewardship and Sustainability Committee has put the organization on the forefront of sustainable investing.
 
Over the past 12 months, the Committee has engaged managers and portfolio companies on our stewardship priorities of climate transition planning, fair pay, sustainable forestry, and transparency. We have voted over 12,000 proxy ballots in alignment with our Custom Proxy Voting Guidelines, which feature action on these topics and are poised to adopt new principles-based guidelines that will allow us to remain nimble in this fast-evolving space. We also adopted a Responsible Workforce Management Policy and Approach for our Private Equity investments to systematize our due diligence on this important topic.
 
These and other actions have been taken based on rigorous research and analysis, positioning us to remain focused on our fiduciary duty to deliver long-term value for the PRIT Fund.
 
PRIM is truly an industry leader. I am proud of the steps that we have taken to maximize opportunity and sustainability alongside returns.

Unclaimed Property

Moving on to Unclaimed Property, I am pleased to report the Division continues to provide superior service – reuniting owners with lost assets.
 
The website FindMassmoney.gov had over 24 million page views in Fiscal Year 2025. The Division paid over 125,000 claims of which 60,664 of these were approved for immediate payment without the claimant having to fill out any additional paperwork due to our “fast track” verification process. In an effort to reach a wider audience and to properly reflect the diversity of our population, the Division integrated a translation tool on its website. This tool allows our website to be instantly translated into 10 languages. Since this launch 2 years ago, the website has been translated over 90,000 times.
 
In Fiscal Year 2025, the Division had a record-breaking year reuniting people with their money by returning over $196 million in cash and almost $18 million in securities on 131,000 claims. This totals a return of unclaimed funds to over $202 million to individuals and businesses across the Commonwealth.
 
Looking at our revenue numbers, our team has been working with your respective offices on a two-year project that has allowed for historic revenue reversions to the general fund. Adding over $300 million extra over a two-year period. We accomplished this by performing a series of stock liquidations for securities held by the department.
 
Unclaimed Property was able to revert over $331 million to the Commonwealth in Fiscal Year 2025. For the current Fiscal Year 2026, the Division is still on track to meet its reversion estimate of $368 million. For this upcoming fiscal year, the Division will return back to standard operations and is estimating reverting $193,500,000 in Fiscal Year 2027.

ABCC

And finally, to the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission [ABCC]. The hospitality industry is a major economic driver for the state. The ABCC has partnered directly with the Legislature, Administration, municipalities, industry leaders, and businesses to identify ways to maintain public safety while enhancing growth.
 
This effort has included proactive steps to streamline the application process and educate all stakeholders. The ABCC has expanded its targeted outreach to support entrepreneurs who are women and people of color and conducted 38 outreach events with over 2,030 attendees across the commonwealth.
 
In Fiscal Year 2025, the ABCC generated $6.3 million in revenue for the state, and we project $6.4 million in Fiscal Year 2026 and in Fiscal Year 2027.
 
With all license renewal requirements in place, the annual license renewal process for 2026 is well underway. Since the reports on licenses and transactions are by calendar year, we will have annual numbers available soon.
 
The ABCC is a lean operation that recognizes its impact on the business community and its connection to economic growth. I look forward to working with you to further enhance operations, as we seek new and innovative ways to promote these local and statewide businesses.

Conclusion

Thank you again for inviting me to testify today. I know we will have many more conversations about these issues in the weeks and months ahead. I look forward to our continued collaboration.
 
Now I am happy to answer any questions.