The Queensland government plans to keep on spending rather than cut back to curb mounting debt.
In a pre-budget address to business and industry, Treasurer Jackie Trad insisted continuing to invest in infrastructure projects would keep the state economy ticking.
She pointed to what she described as the state's successes - a drop in unemployment, demand for goods and services and strong exports.
"Budgets are about choices," she said on Thursday.
"In this budget, the Queensland government faces the choice between staying the course or changing tack.
"To maintain our investment in job creating infrastructure and front-line services for a growing state, or to withdraw the government's investment.
"We choose to stay the course."
But she also mentioned problems for her budget to be handed down on Tuesday.
A writedown in Queensland's share of the GST, the $1.3 billion cost of flood recovery in the state's north and west, and covering the costs of NDIS support for 40,000 people who are yet to join the scheme, are putting pressure on the government.
It comes as total government debt soars to a projected $83 billion by 2021/22.
Ms Trad said the budget would include a surplus, and says Queensland's debt is still lower than what it would have been under the Newman government, five years after it was voted out of office.
"The easiest thing in the world to do would be to respond by severely tightening our belt, cut our infrastructure investment and cut back on delivering services," Ms Trad said.
"But, amid all of this, we are a Labor government ... and we have no intention of penalising Queenslanders.
She took a swing at Prime Minister Scott Morrison, saying his government is holding Queensland back in favour of other states.
"The fact is, this federal government is a ball and chain around Queensland's ankle," she said.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and her ministers have travelled to the bush in the weeks since Labor lost the federal election in a bid to soothe voters who punished the party.
They have spruiked coal infrastructure and announced budget measures in coal communities to show they support the multi-billion dollar industry ahead of next year's state poll.
