Rowan County manager presents balanced roughly $216 million FY2025-26 budget; tax rate held steady

County Manager presented the recommended fiscal year 2025–26 budget to the Rowan County Board of Commissioners on May 19, proposing a roughly $215.98 million general fund budget while keeping the property tax rate at $0.58 per $100 of assessed value.

The manager said the recommended budget uses about $10,604,361 of fund balance to balance the books while projecting a $21.225 billion tax base and a conservative $40 million in sales-tax revenue for the general fund. A public hearing on the budget was set for June 2 at 3 p.m., with a final vote scheduled for June 16, as required before the July 1 fiscal start.

The budget matters because it combines service priorities, one-time capital requests and recurring personnel costs under a projection the manager described as unusually weak. "This is really bad. This is the absolute worst projection that Rowan County has had in the last 10 years with the exception of COVID," the County Manager said, referring to the sales-tax forecast that helps fund operations.

Key facts and figures

- Recommended general fund: approximately $215.98 million, a decrease from the current year. - Property tax rate: proposed to remain at $0.58 per $100 valuation; collection rate used in projections: 98%. - Fund balance applied to balance the budget: $10,604,361. - Projected tax base: $21.225 billion (up about 5.4% from the current year). - Sales-tax projection for FY26: $40 million (budgeted flat compared with FY24 actuals). - Employee investment: roughly $4.47 million total (market adjustments, grade progression, longevity and health-insurance increases).

Personnel and pay

The recommended budget includes no net new positions or upgrades; it eliminates 10 currently vacant full-time positions to free about $713,000 to partly fund pay changes. The manager presented a multi-step pay plan for public-safety staff that would take effect July 1 and in part January 1:

- Grade changes for certain positions; when an employee’s grade changes, pay will be raised at least to the new grade minimum (0–5% movement in many cases) with one outlier above that range. - A $500 grade-progression payment. - A 4% in-grade progression increase applied after the $500 step. - An additional 0–3% public-safety adjustment tied to length of service in the current position (0% for under three years; 1% for 3–4 years; 2% for 5–8 years; 3% for 9+ years). - Longevity changes effective Jan. 1, 2026 (0–2% based on years of service).

The manager said HR will provide worksheets showing the exact changes for affected employees if the budget is adopted.

Capital, vehicles and service impacts

The county received requests for 99 new or replacement vehicles, totaling about $7.2 million including upfits; the recommended budget defers many of those purchases and funds fewer vehicles (including a remount for an ambulance that staff said cannot be deferred further). The manager warned that ongoing services and vehicle needs may require future tax increases or staffing reductions if revenue remains weak.

Fire districts and volunteer fire services

Separately, fire district budgets submitted by individual districts would produce a combined estimated increase across all districts of roughly 17%. The manager described a broader pressure on volunteer fire departments caused by rising vehicle and equipment costs, long manufacturer lead times, tighter turnout-gear rules and declining volunteer pools. He said municipalities, the county and fire departments are discussing ways to distribute the costs of growth and service equitably.

Schools and other funds

The recommended budget contains a 3.5% increase in the county's per-pupil funding formula; projected student counts (average daily membership) differ across Rowan-Salisbury Schools, Kannapolis City Schools and charter schools, which affects distribution. Other non-general funds (airport, landfill, risk management, ARPA and others) were presented with their proposed changes.

Next steps and public process

The board scheduled a public hearing on the recommended budget for June 2 at 3 p.m. in the commission chambers and plans to consider final adoption on June 16. The County Manager repeatedly emphasized conservative revenue assumptions and said the board would monitor sales taxes and other receipts before making final choices.

Ending

Commissioners and staff said they will continue outreach and review before the public hearing; the manager encouraged residents to attend and noted the county will provide more detailed employee worksheets if the board approves the overall plan.