Residents press commissioners to boost school funding, homelessness services and election outreach at FY 2025–26 budget hearing

Harnett County residents used the board’s public hearing on the proposed FY 2025–26 budget to urge commissioners to increase support for public schools, emergency services, public health and homelessness prevention, and to add an elections outreach specialist position that the county board of elections has recommended.

County Manager Lisa McFadden summarized the proposed spending plan at the hearing, saying the draft includes a general‑fund budget of $183,457,942, a Harnett Regional Water budget of $50,595,000 and a solid‑waste budget of $8,972,554. McFadden said the proposal would use a little over $8 million of appropriated fund balance and would create 14 new general‑fund positions, five positions for Harnett Regional Water, and two positions in solid waste. She told the board staff will hold additional work sessions before the board is asked to adopt the budget.

Many public speakers urged larger increases for education and more transparency in the budget process. Kate Reichardt, who identified herself as a county resident, said the board must be “honest with the citizens” about tax choices and warned that low property tax rates would leave the county unable to fund schools, road repairs and emergency services. Reichardt also urged commissioners to press state legislators for additional revenue tools.

Richard Chapman, a resident, praised staff work on the budget but called the county’s budget process “murky” and urged more public engagement throughout the year. He said the budget document shows the county is providing an additional $3 million to public schools but that residents do not have detail on how the funds will be used; he said the school system had requested roughly $9 million to increase local supplements for teacher pay.

Rebecca Brock and others also urged the board to prioritize schools and to consider moving the elections outreach specialist from an expansion item into the base budget. Several speakers asked the board to examine the county’s legal and insurance costs and their relationship to law‑enforcement payouts.

Speakers described local service gaps unrelated to the formal budget packet. Melanie Stewart, who identified her nonprofit as Mama Moses Underground Railroad, urged the county to address a local homelessness crisis; Stewart said her organization currently fields calls and pays hotel and other costs to keep people from being evicted. Tanya White Anderson, a disabled veteran, also urged greater investment in schools and community services.

Other commenters made narrower points: one speaker supported trade‑school programs and vocational training for local youth; another thanked the board for raising pay for election‑day workers and urged adding an outreach specialist to boost voter education.

McFadden and staff told the board they had noted the comments and would return with further information in upcoming work sessions; the board did not vote on the FY 2025–26 budget at this meeting. Commissioners scheduled additional work sessions and said the board expects to consider adoption at a later meeting in June.