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St. Mary's County updates FY17 budget after public hearing; commissioners weigh revenues, sheriff increases and capital borrowing
Summary
County staff reported modest revenue increases and several department requests to the FY17 recommended budget, while commissioners discussed limits on the emergency services tax, a $3.1 million sheriff budget realignment, and capital borrowing tied to the CIP and FDR Boulevard project.
St. Mary's County finance staff presented updated revenue and expense adjustments to the board of county commissioners Wednesday, reporting a small net increase to projected revenues but highlighting new costs and capital borrowing that will shape the final fiscal 2017 budget.
The presentation, led by budget staff, said the county's recommended FY17 revenues were balanced initially at $219,782,337 and had since been revised upward by roughly $2.2 million to about $222 million after state updates, grant awards and other adjustments. At the same time, staff reported expenses were running slightly higher than the revised revenue estimate, leaving a near-term shortfall the commissioners must address.
County staff walked the panel through changes by department and revenue source. Notable adjustments included: a $60,000 increase to police state aid; a reduction in highway revenue tied to State Highway Administration updates; an increase of roughly $151,000 in payments in lieu of taxes after two installments were billed; and an estimated $2,000,000 in grants tied to an economic development incubator project matched by expenses. The county also reported $41,000 in turnover savings in salary accounts that can be applied to the budget.
The sheriff's recommended realignment and supplemental requests drew extended attention. Staff said the sheriff was able to realign within his budgets and proposed changes that net an increase of $3,100,859. That package included pay-scale adjustments, increased overtime, expanded hourly positions and training budget changes that the sheriff said he would cover within his resources but that still raised the overall county cost.
Health, extension and library requests were also discussed. The University of Maryland Extension sought $200,854 to cover a state-approved pay increase for positions the county partially funds. The health department requested $146,189 to cover mandated salary increases; commissioners agreed to defer consideration of an additional $82,000 position (a proposed infectious-disease nurse) to the next work session. The library asked for $38,217 to fund a single-step pay increase for staff; commissioners agreed to include that step.
Emergency services support fund and LOSAP. Staff said they had reduced the proposed emergency services support tax rate from 2.8¢ to 2.4¢ because local code (Chapter 49) limits the levy without legislative approval. That cut lowered the annual household impact by roughly one dollar compared with the earlier estimate. The fund still covers debt service for the Fire/Rescue revolving loan fund, some LOSAP (length-of-service award program) obligations (staff cited roughly $787,263 for current retirees and $250,000 for rescue), and typical operating allocations for fire and rescue entities.
Capital program and debt capacity. Commissioners also discussed a new capital request to add $383,000 to an ongoing sheriff district office/security enhancement project, bringing the project close to $3 million. That addition and other planned projects are reflected in the county's updated debt capacity summary, which shows roughly $41.5 million in unissued bonds across FY17–FY22 in the current plan and a jump in debt service from about $10.7 million in FY17 to roughly $13 million the next year in the schedule presented.
Commissioners repeatedly cautioned that the county's revenue growth has been modest and that increased borrowing for projects such as FDR Boulevard and other CIP items will push debt service higher in the short term. Commissioners asked staff to continue refining the cash flow and to work with the Board of Education and other large program owners to time projects where feasible.
What happened next. Commissioners gave general consensus approval to the changes outlined on the revenue/expense change sheets, with specific direction that the proposed $82,000 community health nurse position be discussed at the next budget work session. The state's attorney reclassifications and nonprofit agency funding appeals were postponed to the next session so commissioners could review scoring and hear presentations.
The county's finance team will bring a revised change sheet and updated CIP/debt figures to the next budget work session for further action and formal votes.
