TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - The amount that Florida owes dropped again this year.
That's according to an annual debt report that was presented this month to Gov. Rick Scott and members of the Cabinet.
Florida must pass a balanced budget to pay for routine expenses. But the state borrows money to pay for construction projects.
The new report shows that Florida's overall debt stood at $22.7 billion at the end of June. That's a decrease of $1.4 billion over the previous fiscal year.
Florida's debt jumped in 2015 due primarily to money borrowed to cover the expansion of Interstate 4 in central Florida. But state debt has gone down by $5.5 billion since 2010.
Gov. Scott has also made it a priority to limit borrowing by cutting back on bonds used to pay for school and college construction projects.
