British Columbia's budget surplus was more than seven times higher than originally estimated last year.

The books closed on the 2007-2008 fiscal year with a surplus of $2.9 billion.

The audited financial statements for last year show the surplus is mostly due to higher tax revenues and better-than-expected earnings by the province's Crown corporations, Finance Minister Colin Hansen said Thursday in Victoria.

This is the fourth year in a row the province's books have been in the black.

Hansen's ministry also noted that the auditor general recently expressed concerns about how certain budget items were reported and recommended changes.

But the government said in a news release it would not implement the changes after consulting with government experts, other jurisdictions in Canada and an independent accounting policy advisory committee.