Trumbull County commissioners review $14 million in carryover reserves as budget deadline nears

Trumbull County commissioners spent the bulk of a workshop meeting reviewing the county’s carryover reserves and how much of that balance could be applied to the 2025 budget to avoid layoffs and service cuts.

Prosecutor Bill Danso, speaking as a budget commission member, told the board he trusts the auditor’s estimated available resources — “about 64,000,000 without the clerk of court’s money” — but reminded commissioners that separate carryover balances held as reserves are distinct from the certified estimated revenue and could be tapped if the board decides it is appropriate. “I trust that what the auditor has given us,” Danso said, and he urged the board to consider whether its reserve balances are “too little, too much, just right.”

Danso and county staff outlined the major reserve components the board can review: an undivided sales tax carryover (about $6.5 million), justice sales tax (about $1.5 million), casino tax (about $2.5 million) and a managed-care-organization (MCO) sales tax balance (about $4.4–4.5 million). The group estimated those carryover balances total roughly $14 million and reminded commissioners that the MCO payment was a one-time distribution and is not replenishable.

Why it matters: Commissioners said those funds could prevent staff reductions if used in part; Danso noted that dipping into half of the $14 million “would fill every hole we had in the county,” while warning that using too much could leave the county vulnerable during revenue shortfalls. Commissioners repeatedly urged caution about using the carryover as a patch without an actuarial or peer-county review of appropriate reserve levels.

Details and next steps - Staff and Danso described the reserves as “carryover balances” not included in the certified estimated revenue the budget review committee transmitted to the board. Those carryovers include tax accounts linked to sales taxes and program-specific receipts, some of which are nonrecurring. Danso said the auditor’s reports and the budget commission’s certification document the balances. - The county does not currently have a formal “reserve balance account” for budget stabilization, Danso said; such accounts are permitted by statute but are capped (he cited a statutory cap framed as either 5% of last year’s revenues or one‑sixth of last year’s expenditures). Danso recommended consulting the County Commissioners Association of Ohio (CCAO) and peer counties to identify typical reserve practice and recommended possibly hiring an outside fiscal consultant or actuary to analyze an appropriate target for Trumbull County. - Commissioners and staff cited recent use of reserves: Danso said the county dipped into reserves last year and read figures showing about $751,952.48 was used from one carryover (09/21) and $368,644.96 from another (09/28), roughly $1.12 million combined. - Board members discussed timing. The commissioners must finalize the budget by March 26, they said; any transfer of carryovers to the general fund would require a resolution and likely a special meeting of the budget review committee to amend certified estimated resources before the appropriation resolution is adopted.

Officials repeatedly emphasized process and caution. “Don’t lay anybody off yet,” one commissioner said, urging the board to evaluate reserves and other steps before authorizing personnel actions. Commissioners proposed a short work effort to contact several peer counties and the CCAO for comparative reserve levels and to schedule special budget sessions to review possible transfers and reallocation before the March deadline.

Ending County officials set a course for rapid follow-up: gather peer-county reserve data, consult statutory limits and the auditor, and consider a short list of options (limited transfer for one-time stabilization, targeted use to avoid specific layoffs, or creation of a formal reserve account). Commissioners said they will meet again as needed this week to produce a final recommendation to the full board before certification deadlines.