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Harnett County adopts FY2025‑26 budget, authorizes $20.21 million fund‑balance appropriation with plan to restore reserves
Summary
The Harnett County Board of Commissioners on June 16 adopted a fiscal year 2025‑26 budget that appropriates $20,210,244 of fund balance to cover one‑time needs and state funding formula impacts. County staff and commissioners emphasized a plan to rebuild reserves to the board’s 20% target.
HARNETT COUNTY — The Harnett County Board of Commissioners adopted the fiscal year 2025‑26 budget on June 16, approving a general fund budget of $195,698,342 and an appropriation of $20,210,244 from the county’s fund balance to cover one‑time needs and offset changes tied to the state funding formula.
County finance staff explained that the appropriation will reduce the county’s estimated unassigned fund balance to roughly 17.58% at fiscal year end. County policy states the unassigned fund balance shall not fall below 15% at fiscal year end, with a target of 20%. Finance staff said the county’s unassigned fund balance had been as high as about 33% after previous years’ closings and that the appropriation is intended as a limited, near‑term step while the county implements a plan to return to the 20% target.
Finance staff described the drivers behind the appropriation, including adjustments tied to state low‑wealth funding calculations and continued one‑time support for local school operations. Staff reported that, historically, the county appropriated modest amounts of fund balance for capital each year but that the proposed appropriation for 2025‑26 is larger due to the combination of school funding needs and other capital timing.
Key figures and budget notes provided on the record: the adopted general fund total of $195,698,342; the proposed appropriation of fund balance $20,210,244; and staff’s current estimate that remaining year‑end residuals could return roughly $2–3 million, moving the unassigned balance nearer to 18.9% (staff cautioned final invoices and year‑end adjustments may change the figure).
Commissioners and staff asked that the budget ordinance include a statement (recorded in section 16 of the draft ordinance) documenting the reasons for the appropriation and a plan to restore reserves. Finance staff and the county manager told the board they will include the recovery plan in budget documents and present capital improvement plan recommendations in the fall.
A motion to adopt the budget as presented, together with the staff commitment to a reserve restoration plan, passed on a roll call of the board. The full, signed budget ordinance will be posted online by the county manager, staff said.
