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Financial Management Committee approves last-minute budget cleanup for Bedford County and schools
Summary
A special-called Bedford County Financial Management Committee meeting approved two year-end budget amendments—one for the Board of Education and one for the county—to zero out accounts for audit and to move funds for legal fees in a city-county lawsuit; both measures will be forwarded to the County Commission.
The Bedford County Financial Management Committee voted to approve two year-end budget amendments during a brief special-called meeting that began at 6:30 p.m., sending both measures to the full County Commission for final action.
Committee members described the items as routine “cleanup” amendments needed to close the fiscal year and avoid audit findings. “I think about these is what I call housekeeping or clean up the last minute things we have to do just to close the year out and satisfy audit when it's reviewed that our numbers are zeroed out when we close the year,” Speaker 1, committee member, said.
The first item, labeled Board of Education budget amendment No. 5, had been approved earlier by the school board and was transmitted to the committee for action. “They approve the amendment and then send it to this committee,” Robert, school board representative, said.
The committee also approved county budget amendment No. 8, a package of department transfers that includes a large transfer to cover legal fees tied to a city-county lawsuit. “There is a large transfer move that is related to our legal fees associated with the city county lawsuit,” Speaker 1 said, noting the transfer was consistent with prior Commission approvals and is being placed where the funds can be spent.
Committee members explained that many of the transfers address salary and benefits overages, which, if left uncorrected, could trigger audit findings. “If we have an overage in salaries or benefits, then we could have an audit finding,” Speaker 1 said.
Both amendments were moved, seconded and approved in committee; the items will appear on the County Commission agenda later the same day. The committee did not specify dollar amounts in the meeting record, and no votes were recorded by name in the committee transcript.
The measures are procedural steps to close the fiscal year: the board-level amendment came from the school board’s lunch-hour meeting and county transfers consolidate lines so departments can cover payroll and the county can allocate previously authorized legal funds for the lawsuit.
