Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Sustainability Fund topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Supervisors pause $25,000 seed deposit; sustainability fund to continue soil and pocket‑prairie programs
Summary
The county’s sustainability fund has $119,000 available and staff requested $69,000 for FY27; supervisors agreed not to add the usual $25,000 seed this year while preserving external programs including soil health and pocket prairie.
Becky Sanguinis and Casey Hutchinson briefed the board on the Sustainability and Energy Reinvestment Fund (FD20), a rollover fund established in 2014 to support internal energy projects and external programs such as soil‑quality restoration and pocket prairies.
Staff reported approximately $119,000 available and requested $69,000 in allocations for FY27, including $30,000 for a soil health/soil quality restoration program and $8,000 for the Pocket Prairie program. The packet also identified $6,000 for greenhouse gas projects and a potential modest allocation for a fleet‑study effort after a planned federal grant for that work did not materialize.
During discussion supervisors asked whether the board’s standing $25,000 “seed” deposit into the fund was required this year. Staff explained the seed is discretionary and typically added in spring if fund balances fall below $250,000. Several supervisors said they preferred to forego the $25,000 seed for FY27 to preserve existing county revenue for other priorities. The board directed staff to proceed with the $69,000 program allocations and to model the budget without the $25,000 seed for now.
Staff emphasized pockets of strong public participation in the programs: the soil‑health program has assisted more than 80 households since 2023, and the Pocket Prairie program nearly doubled participation from 20 to 35 in the last year. Supervisors praised the programs and asked staff to monitor spending and program uptake throughout the fiscal year.
No formal vote was recorded; staff will reflect the board’s direction when preparing final budget materials.
