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This Thursday, February 19, at 5 p.m., the nineteen elected representatives of the territorial council will meet to discuss the budgetary guidelines for the 2026 fiscal year.
For the elected officials, the time has come to examine the accounts. Or, more precisely, the budgetary guidelines for the territorial community. On Thursday, February 19, at 5 p.m., the nineteen territorial councilors will meet in the deliberation room of the community building to discuss the budget that will be voted on in the coming weeks. The budgetary guidelines report will cover expenditures, revenues, operating costs, and investments for the 2026 fiscal year.
Needless to say, the Collectivité of Saint Barthélemy finds itself in a rare, if not unique, financial situation. It has a provisional surplus of approximately €91.7 million, mainly related to operating expenses. In fact, it shows a positive balance of €162.6 million when the 2024 surplus is added. In 2025, operating expenses amounted to more than €68.3 million, with revenues of more than €125.5 million. The carryover of the 2024 surplus amounts to more than €105.3 million.
Revenue of €118.1 million is forecast.
In terms of investment, the situation is somewhat different. Total expenditure amounts to more than €100.6 million, with revenue of around €47.3 million. The closing deficit for the financial year therefore amounts to nearly €53.4 million, with a shortfall of more than €17.5 million. Consequently, the financing requirement for the investment section is capped at just over €70.9 million. Fortunately, the surplus in the operating section makes it possible to fill this gap and, better still, to post a provisional closing surplus of nearly €91.7 million.
However, as in previous years, revenue estimates for the 2026 financial year show a slight decline. They are expected to fall from around €124.7 million in 2025 to €118.1 million. Nevertheless, it should be noted that revenue from the main taxes continued to grow in 2025. There was a 34.2% increase in the CFAE (from $4.6 million to $6.2 million), a 7.5% increase in dock dues (from $23.3 million to $25 million), and a 9.3% increase in waste collection taxes (from $2.2 million to $2.4 million). Transfer duties also rose in 2025 (16.59%, from $39.4 million to $45.9 million), as did revenue from tourist tax (13.68%, from $15.3 million to $17.3 million). Overall, tax revenues increased by 11% between 2024 and 2025.
What about major construction projects?
The topic that elected officials will focus on during this budgetary policy debate will undoubtedly be the investments planned for 2026. In particular, those for projects and construction sites that are still pending or, in some cases, at a standstill. The cultural center and parking lot in Gustavia, for example. Before 2026, more than €6.6 million was allocated by the Collectivité for this project, which is scheduled to take thirteen years to complete. This year, €7 million is to be committed. The total estimated cost of the project is €31 million. However, for the past four years, the project has not progressed. Only a gaping hole remains in the heart of Gustavia.
For the construction of the Gustavia school complex, the initial project for which was abandoned at the beginning of the term of office, €395,706 has been allocated before 2026. Eight million euros are to be invested in 2026. The total cost of the operation, which is expected to last five years, is €28 million.
The 2026 financial year should see the completion of certain projects. These include the educational farm, for which a balance of €667,587 remains to be paid, and the fire station, for which the balance still amounts to €521,915.
At more than €15.3 million per year, payroll represents a significant item in the Collectivity's budget. At the end of 2025, the Collectivity had 278 employees: 28 in category A, 29 in category B, and 202 in category C. Payroll has been steadily increasing since 2022, when it stood at more than €12 million. Since 2021 (€11.6 million, down 0.54% compared to 2020), the payroll has increased by more than €1 million per year.
