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Washington County commissioners review FY25 budget, fund balances and capital priorities
Summary
At a Jan. 16 recessed workshop, commissioners reviewed FY25 budget materials, a corrected UGFFB figure, CIP priorities, proprietary fund billing proposals and potential referendum revenue; commissioners recessed to continue the workshop Jan. 22.
The Washington County Board of Commissioners reviewed a detailed FY25 budget packet and discussed fund balances, capital projects and recurring contracts during a recessed workshop on Jan. 16, 2024.
County Manager and County Attorney Curtis Potter opened the workshop and introduced a revised department budget request form, "Dept Planning & Misc Q&A," asking departments to identify a central mission and complete a brief SWOT analysis as part of their annual submissions. Potter also walked commissioners through capital improvement project (CIP) priorities and a list of major recurring contracts, including court security, mowing and central services/IT.
Finance Officer Missy Dixon reported the audit had been discussed earlier and presented the monthly financial summary as of Dec. 31, 2023. Potter noted a correction to the package: the UGFFB figure from audit is $7.83 million; after subtracting roughly $2.0 million already allocated for the current fiscal year and a 20 percent reserve (shown in the packet as $3.69 million), the illustrative remaining amount is about $2.14 million, though the year‑end net gain or loss remains "+/- TBD." Potter also noted that if the referenced referendum passed, Washington County would receive about $300,000.
Commissioners discussed recurring intergovernmental funding and proprietary services. Potter said Washington County will likely bill Town of Roper residents directly for their solid‑waste user fees through county tax bills (mirroring billing the county already does for Creswell residents). The board reviewed curbside pickup contracts, including a curbside tipping contract through ARSWA (the transcript uses the acronym; the full name was not specified in the meeting text) that runs through 2035, and a mowing contract that runs through Feb. 2025 and is slated for rebidding in fall 2024.
Commissioners also raised capital‑needs questions. Chair Ann C. Keyes asked about equipment to offload supplies during mass food distribution events; Commissioner John C. Spruill asked about fire department radio upgrades and mentioned a grant match of roughly $40,000 for a new fire truck. Commissioner Tracey A. Johnson expressed interest in pursuing EV charging station grants and said she will raise the topic at an upcoming NACo/RAC meeting.
Procedural motions at the session included a recess to 1:15 p.m. (moved by Commissioner Tracey A. Johnson, seconded by Commissioner Carol V. Phelps; passed unanimously) and a later motion to continue the workshop at 8:00 a.m. on Jan. 22, 2024 (moved by Johnson, seconded by Commissioner Julius Walker Jr.; passed unanimously).
The board identified several follow-up items for staff: have Tax Administrator Ms. Wilkins brief the commissioners about the solar farm taxation and collection options, provide town‑by‑town E911 call statistics, and incorporate ambulances and planned major replacements into the CIP for multi‑year planning. The board recessed the meeting to continue the budget workshop on Jan. 22, 2024.
