Budget committee probes Q3 general fund rollforwards, asks staff to footnote fund-balance transfers

Walter Person, chief financial officer for the City of Memphis, told the City Council budget committee on May 12 that the fiscal year 2025 third-quarter general fund report shows revenues and expenditures roughly in line with Q3 pacing but that encumbrances and transfers make the headline gap look larger than the underlying shortfall.

The council chair, Chair Carlisle, and several council members pressed the administration to make the report easier to read for the public. Chair Carlisle asked staff to provide a list of encumbrances rolled forward from FY24 that exceed $200,000 and to footnote transfers in that are effectively fund-balance moves rather than arm’s‑length revenues.

Why it matters: the committee’s review matters because transfers in from other funds and encumbrances carried from the prior fiscal year affect available operating cash and the appearance of whether the…