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Black Hawk County finance staff outlines fund-balance spenddown, bond plan and limits on using bond proceeds
Summary
County staff presented a multi-year plan to use reserves for non-bond-eligible equipment and to issue bonds for capital projects, citing changes in state law that bar using bond proceeds for equipment and forecasting a modest increase to the debt-service levy.
Black Hawk County staff laid out a multi-year plan Feb. 11 to use part of the county's unassigned fund balance to pay for capital needs the county can no longer finance with general-obligation bonds and to issue a sequence of bond issues for large projects starting in fiscal 2026.
The presentation, given during the board's budget work session, said House File 718 removed a catch-all clause that previously allowed some nonbuilding expenses to be included in bond-funded projects. That change, staff said, means many items the county previously could bond ' notably equipment ' must now be paid from operating funds or reserves.
Why it matters: The finance presentation framed policy choices the board must make this spring. Staff recommended keeping an unassigned fund-balance target in the 40'45 percent range of annual expenditures to preserve flexibility,…
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