FAO RELEASES EXPENDITURE MONITOR 2024-25: Q4
TORONTO, July 30, 2025 – Today, the Financial Accountability Office of Ontario (FAO) released its Expenditure Monitor 2024-25: Q4 report. This report provides information on unaudited spending by the Province through the end of the 2024-25 fiscal year (March 31, 2025).
As outlined in the 2024 Ontario Budget, the Province began the 2024-25 fiscal year with a spending plan of $217.0 billion. During the 2024-25 fiscal year, the Province increased its spending plan by $10.7 billion through Supplementary Estimates, Special Warrants and Treasury Board Orders. This resulted in a revised spending plan of $227.7 billion. By sector, there were spending plan increases in health ($6.2 billion), ‘other programs’ ($2.1 billion), justice ($1.3 billion), children, community and social services ($1.0 billion), postsecondary education ($0.5 billion) and education ($0.5 billion). These spending plan increases were partially offset by a net $1.0 billion drawdown from the Contingency Fund.
Based on available information, the FAO estimates that unaudited spending by the Province in 2024-25 was $226.7 billion. Compared to the Province’s revised spending plan of $227.7 billion, unaudited spending was $1.0 billion (‑0.5 per cent) less than planned. By sector, lower-than-planned spending was led by interest on debt (‑$1.2 billion), followed by ‘other programs’ (-$0.6 billion), children, community and social services (-$0.2 billion), justice (-$0.1 billion) and education (-$0.1 billion). Postsecondary education ($1.2 billion) and health ($0.5 billion) had higher-than-planned spending.
The report also compares 2024-25 unaudited spending against 2023-24 audited spending to provide context for provincial spending trends and to identify significant year-over-year spending changes. The FAO estimates that spending in the 2024-25 fiscal year was $17.0 billion (8.1 per cent) higher than in 2023-24. The largest year-over-year spending increase was in health ($6.2 billion), followed by ‘other programs’ ($6.1 billion), children, community and social services ($1.2 billion), justice ($1.1 billion), education ($1.0 billion), interest on debt ($0.8 billion) and postsecondary education ($0.7 billion).
For more information, including spending by all of the Province’s programs and ministries, read the full report here.
Quick Facts:
- Final audited 2024-25 spending will be available in the 2024-25 Public Accounts of Ontario, which will be released in September 2025.
- The $6.2 billion (7.3 per cent) year-over-year spending increase in the health sector was led by payments to physicians and practitioners ($2.9 billion), operating spending by hospitals ($2.2 billion) and the operation of long-term care homes ($0.5 billion).
- The $6.1 billion (19.0 per cent) year-over-year spending increase in the ‘other programs’ sector was led by the Ontario Taxpayer Rebate ($2.9 billion), the Mercury Disability Fund ($0.8 billion) and the Ontario Electricity Rebate ($0.4 billion).
About the FAO:
Established by the Financial Accountability Officer Act, 2013, the Financial Accountability Office of Ontario (FAO) provides independent analysis on the state of the Province’s finances, trends in the provincial economy and related matters important to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
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For further information, please contact:
Sophia Zhu l 416 931 5498 l SZhu@fao-on.org l fao-on.org