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Sampson County staff present budget projections showing large property valuation increase and a one-time fund balance use
Summary
County finance staff told commissioners at a Feb. 10 workshop that real-property valuation for the coming fiscal year is projected to rise by about $100 million, motor-vehicle valuations are expected to fall by about $6 million, and the county used an unusually large fund-balance appropriation to balance the current budget.
Sampson County finance staff presented preliminary revenue estimates on Feb. 10 that showed a roughly $100 million increase in real-property valuation for the coming fiscal year and continued uncertainty in other revenue categories.
At a county budget workshop facilitator Hudson said the numbers were provisional and would be adjusted as tax-office data comes in, and that staff would present an initial budget no later than June 1. Melissa, identified in the meeting as a member of county finance staff, told commissioners, “As you can see, there is a hundred million dollar estimated increase in real estate, real property values, and a $6,000,000 estimated decrease in motor vehicles.” She also summarized the county’s tax base and collection math: “This is a $7,190,000,000 tax valuation, and 1¢ at the county collection rate will generate $697,430.”
Nut graf: The presentation was part of a multi-hour goal-setting workshop; the revenue slides were intended as a starting point for commissioners as they prioritized county needs. Staff emphasized the figures were projections and subject to change as more data arrives.
Finance slides shown at the meeting compared Sampson County to nearby counties using data from the North Carolina Association of Counties and the North Carolina Department of Revenue. Melissa told the board the property-tax revenue projection for the current fiscal year was about $43,111,500 and the estimate for fiscal year 2025–26 was $44,844,400, noting those figures include prior-year collections, penalties and interest. Sales-tax projections were described as modestly increased from earlier estimates — staff said they adjusted the forecast upward by about three-quarters of a million dollars to $16,035,800 based on five months of actual receipts.
Melissa also highlighted leasing and rental receipts and detention-center housing revenue. She said lease payments from GFL (the vendor identified in the slides) arrive quarterly and that rental and ambulance fee collections were “a little bit ahead” of earlier expectations; she recommended conservatism because projections can move both ways.
A significant caution on the slides concerned fund balance. Melissa showed that the amount of fund balance appropriated in the FY 2024–25 budget was large and not likely to be repeated. She told the board: “11,549,000.000 was the amount of fund balance that was appropriated for the FY 24–25 budget. Although in years past, we haven't been able to grow our fund balance to a healthy amount, This right here is not sustainable.” Hudson reiterated that staff would refine numbers before a formal budget presentation and that the workshop’s purpose was to help prioritize requests that typically exceed projected revenues.
The presentation included county comparisons on effective tax rate, levy per capita and taxable property valuation per capita; staff explained differences can reflect revaluation calendars and local economic and development patterns. Throughout the briefing staff warned commissioners the numbers were early estimates and that final budget decisions would require updated tax-office data.
Ending: Staff said it will use the commissioners’ priorities developed during the workshop to shape spending proposals and present a formal budget no later than June 1; commissioners asked for the data package used in the presentation and were given copies at the meeting.
