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Finance director reports strong general-fund position but flags HHS and highway pressures; county hires consultant for equipment review
Summary
Finance staff reported a roughly $13 million fund balance with strong unassigned reserves but noted HHS and highway funds will require transfers; the board discussed hiring consultant Bill Kern and strategic steps to improve equipment utilization and reduce future CIP borrowing.
Sawyer County's finance director reported an overall positive end to 2024 — revenues ahead and an elevated unassigned fund balance — while flagging pressure in Health & Human Services (HHS) and the highway enterprise fund that will require transfers or strategic changes.
At the finance committee meeting the treasurer described December activity (13 proceeds checks totaling $214,317.71 sent, two cashed) and updated land-sale activity; delinquent real-estate amounts were reported before penalties at about $422,000. The finance director reported the county is at about 92% of expected year activity for the fiscal year, with general-fund revenues at 98% and expenses at 86%.
Staff explained some departmental funds require transfers: a $1.3 million transfer supported HHS in 2024, and the highway enterprise fund recorded an interfund loan of about $535,000 and an unrestricted net position of negative roughly $416,000, with general-fund transfers in 2024 of about $750,000 to support operations. The finance director said highway revenues and timing of receipts can create year-end cash shortfalls and that equipment purchases moved costs into service late in the year.
The board discussed longer-term responses. Mike (county staff) said the county is using strategic planning to address these issues and that the county has hired Bill Kern as a consultant to review equipment, fleet utilization and facilities; "He actually was the highway commissioner here 30 years ago... he is consulting now," Mike said. Staff described efforts to increase utilization of state equipment to raise reimbursement rates, which could reduce future capital borrowing.
The committee also heard that the county's jail population has fallen from about 100 to roughly 60 inmates, a reduction staff attributed in part to an additional courtroom that speeds processing and to Justice Point programming; staff noted the reduction decreased costs associated with housing inmates out of county.
No formal budget decisions were made at the meeting; board members asked for follow-up on possible facility consolidation, equipment funding strategies, and further review of program offsets such as the LCO compact payment used for criminal-justice coordination and Justice Point programming.
(Reporting based on Sawyer County Finance Committee meeting transcript.)
