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Atchison County finance director warns of short-term cash shortfall, urges caution on rolling over budgets
Summary
Finance Director Mark Selvner told the Atchison County Commission that the county began 2025 with a negative general-fund cash position that should correct after a Jan. 31 tax distribution, and urged commissioners to delay rolling departmental budget surpluses into a reserve until collections are confirmed.
Atchison County Finance Director Mark Selvner told the Board of County Commissioners on Jan. 21 that the county’s general fund is temporarily negative but should improve after the scheduled Jan. 31 tax distribution.
“Until that happens, we will continue to be negative,” Selvner said, adding that the county’s overall February cash position factors in payroll and payables that hit after year-end.
Selvner and commissioners discussed three drivers behind the shortfall: delayed tax distributions, large late-year changes in property tax status (including BOTA decisions referenced in the meeting), and smaller-than-expected collections. Selvner said the county’s remaining 2024 cash (after an early CD cash-in) was limited and that rolling department surpluses into a formal reserve would require transferring actual cash out of the general fund.
Why it matters: Commissioners must decide whether to move roughly $154,303 of unused 2024 budgeted amounts into a formal reserve. Selvner warned that moving those funds would leave the county with a smaller operating cash balance at the start of 2025 and recommended holding off until tax collection numbers are confirmed after the Jan. 31 distribution.
Key details: - Credit card payments in the next accounts-payable run were reported at about $7,005.21; the payroll/expense batch for the upcoming payday was reported at about $55,007.89. - Selvner said the general fund “will go more so negative, to the tune of about $270,000 in the whole,” because the January distributions of property taxes, which fund multiple levied entities, had not yet occurred. - The county’s ending cash balance for 2024 was reported as $291,085 (which included a $215,000 CD that had been cashed in); without that CD the available cash was about $76,085. - Several departments finished 2024 with positive unspent budgets (IT ~$75,000; Appraiser ~$44,000), while the county clerk, maintenance and EMS were reported as over budget for 2024 (approx. clerk -$4,300; maintenance -$29,500; EMS -$98,200 as stated in the meeting). Selvner noted these are rough figures and offered to provide exact penny figures on request.
Discussion and options: Commissioners and Selvner discussed delaying any decision on rolling departmental unspent funds into reserves until after the Jan. 31 distribution (Selvner indicated an update could be provided at the Feb. 4 meeting). The board also asked staff to obtain more detailed information from the treasurer and appraiser about year-to-year collections and any large abatements or late reclassifications that affected 2024 totals.
Selvner recommended caution about creating additional appointed reserves while operating cash was low and suggested the board consider policy guidance on reserve use, reserve size targets (Selvner noted a commonly cited benchmark of 10–12% of general fund but stressed the county’s current reserve is below that), and whether to retain the existing CD rather than cash it to cover operations.
Next steps: Commissioners directed staff to return numbers after the Jan. 31 distribution, and to request historical collection/abatement data from the treasurer and appraiser to clarify whether the 2024 shortfall is a one-time event or an ongoing trend.
Ending: Selvner said he would prepare updated figures for the Feb. 4 meeting and the board agreed to revisit any decision to roll budget balances into reserves after that update.
