Nelson County introduces $51.09M FY26 budget; board hears MACAA and NCCDF funding requests

Nelson County officials unveiled an introduced FY26 general fund budget of $51,088,536 on March 18, presenting priorities that include completion of the 2026 property reassessment, an updated zoning ordinance, economic development planning with the EDA, law enforcement and regional jail operations, emergency services, continued investment in cybersecurity, and full funding for the School Division's operational request and four school buses.

County Administrator Candice W. McGarry said the introduced budget assumes no change to tax rates and described the value of a penny on the real estate levy as $326,652. Director of Finance Grace E. Mawyer said staffing adjustments proposed in the budget include a 3% salary/benefit increase for employees, an additional 6% increase for dispatch staff, and a one-time 1.5% bonus for full‑time employees plus $200 for regular part‑time staff; staff also reported no health insurance increase was included for FY26.

Board members reviewed line items and capital investments funded largely by FY25 carryover, including $379,000 for emergency services vehicles, $260,484 for four law enforcement vehicles, $156,729 for animal shelter repairs, a full telephone system upgrade estimated at $162,000, replacement of CAD/RMS servers, and $234,592 for the transfer station tipping floor. The budget includes a $3.8 million year‑ending balance composed mainly of $3.2 million in carryover and $600,000 in general fund balance; $2,125,109 was identified for capital outlay.

During the agency review portion of the meeting, two nonprofit leaders asked for county support. John Edwards, interim executive director of MACAA, detailed his six‑week interim engagement to stabilize the organization, described MACAA programs in Nelson County (after‑school at Tye River and Rockfish, emergency services, and Project Discovery), and said MACAA has worked with 44 families locally; the agency requested an increase in county support from $36,000 to $55,000 (an additional $19,000) likely aimed at expanding after‑school programming. Dr. Jessica L. Ligon said she had "felt 'downright lied to'" about past program reporting and pressed for precise counts and dollar figures; Edwards said he would provide numbers and conduct a national search for a permanent executive director.

Margaret Clair, Executive Director of the Nelson County Community Development Foundation, asked for $25,000 in materials to support a high‑school home building project on county‑owned lots in Arrington. She said the build would take about a year, students could learn on site, and proceeds or future projects could seed additional housing initiatives. Clair also reported NCCDF spent roughly $60,000 over 12 months on emergency utility and rent assistance and said completing apartments in Roseland would require an additional $65,000.

Board members asked staff for more detail in several areas: updated bus fleet statistics (ages and replacement needs), a breakdown of Animal Control vehicle purchases, further information on after‑school participation (Superintendent Hester reported 9'10 students currently participating), and options for Piney River water and sewer rates. The Board agreed to bring specific questions and any requested changes forward at a joint meeting with the Nelson County School Board scheduled for March 20, 2025.

The meeting adjourned at 1:56 p.m. and was continued to March 20 for the joint session with the School Board.