Mitchell County proposes $28.16 million budget, raises fire tax amid storm recovery

Mitchell County’s manager presented a proposed fiscal year 2025–26 budget totaling $28,160,596 and told the Board of Commissioners the plan reflects extraordinary storm-related costs and a need to rely on fund balance and future reimbursements.

The budget message said the proposal includes a $2,271,173 fund-balance appropriation (carryover of $734,001.74, leaving a net appropriation of $1,536,999) and assumes a 97% tax collection rate. The county manager said the current amended FY 2024–25 budget is about $38,581,599, with more than $10 million of that figure tied to expenses from Tropical Storm Helene.

The proposal keeps the property tax rate at 56¢ per $100 valuation and raises the fire tax by 1¢ per $100 valuation, effective July 1, 2025. The manager said the fire-tax change is expected to generate about $210,829.97 for volunteer fire districts and listed projected additional allocations for districts including Bakersfield, Fort Mountain, Bradshaw, Spruce Pine and Parkway. Based on a 2022 average property value cited in the presentation, the manager said the change will add roughly $19–$20 per year for a typical homeowner.

Why it matters: the county framed the budget as a roadmap for long-term disaster recovery after the September…