Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the County Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Cheshire County commissioners warn reliance on ProShare, ARPA and fund balance could squeeze 2026 budget
Summary
Commissioners discussed risks from leaning on one-time ProShare and ARPA funds to offset taxes, noting higher use of fund balance and uncertainty in state reimbursements that could affect credit ratings and 2026 tax rates.
Cheshire County commissioners spent a large portion of their Feb. 19 meeting focused on fiscal risks tied to reliance on one-time funding sources and the county’s fund balance.
Commissioner (Speaker 1) and county staff (Speaker 5) said the county has used ProShare and ARPA funds to smooth taxes in recent years, but warned that the practice leaves the county exposed if those revenues decline. "We have now essentially, in an indirect way, increased our use of fund balance to almost $6,000,000 in this budget," Speaker 5 said, adding that a larger drawdown of reserves could limit options for 2026 and beyond.
Why it matters: Officials said using one-time or estimated revenues to offset recurring costs can raise taxes later or harm the county’s borrowing terms. Speaker 5 noted Moody’s or another rating agency could view continued use of fund balance to offset taxes as a negative when conducting a credit review.
What was said: Commissioners described a multi-year budgeting challenge, with Speaker 1 saying the county must "own" recurring costs rather than continually backfilling them with short-term funds. Officials discussed prior ARPA distributions and how ProShare reconciliations by the state can materially change the county’s expected receipts. "We may not have the $1,820,000 to offset 2026 taxes," Speaker 5 said, referring to prior-year ProShare assumptions.
Numbers and uncertainty: Speakers cited historical ProShare and fund-balance figures in broad terms (ProShare totals discussed in the transcript range from about $4.9 million to $5.4 million in different years and allocations). County staff said they had allocated about $4,050,000 in ProShare in the current budget and warned state reconciliation could reduce future receipts.
What’s next: Commissioners said department heads and staff will continue line-by-line budget work and that the county will form a regional group to monitor federal and state-level funding developments. No formal budget action was taken at the meeting; discussion was preparatory for next year’s budget process.
Attributions: Quotes in this article come from speakers identified in the meeting transcript as Speaker 1 and Speaker 5; no full personal names or titles were provided in the transcript.
