Hope Mills workshop reviews budget roles, timeline and choices as $680,000 shortfall illustrates trade-offs

Drew, finance staff, told the Hope Mills board that department heads prepare detailed requests while the town manager serves as the statutory budget officer and must propose a fiscally balanced budget for council adoption.

The briefing explained fund structure — a general fund for most departments, a separate storm-water fund, and a Powell Bill fund dedicated to streets and sidewalks — and said funds can be spent only for their designated purposes. "The manager proposes the budget as the budget officer," Drew said, adding the manager must balance service needs, political pressures and legal mandates when assembling the proposal.

Drew walked the board through the proposed 2026 calendar: staff begin preparation in January, a priorities retreat is scheduled for Feb. 6, department worksheets go out the week of March 2, department requests are due the week of March 23, members will receive the proposed budget by the first May meeting, a public hearing is planned for the first June meeting, and the council typically adopts the budget at the first or second June meeting.

The presentation clarified common practices for amendments and internal transfers. Drew said budget amendments are rounded to the nearest $25 for tracking; the group reviewed three sample amendments to be considered that night: a Parks and Recreation service/system contract for $25,000 funded by higher program revenues; a prior attorney invoice of $17,762 (amended on the budget as $17,775 because of rounding); and a police equipment request of $18,100 to be paid from asset-forfeiture funds. He emphasized the town manager can approve internal department transfers and budget moves up to $15,000; anything above that threshold must go to the council.

To make the choices concrete, Drew led members through a budget-exercise showing an unbalanced hypothetical shortfall of $680,000. The exercise posed four decisions: whether to buy four police cruisers (estimated $78,000 each) versus three; whether to fund three new firefighter positions at roughly $71,500 each plus $7,500 per firefighter in equipment; whether to fund $245,000 in baseball-field improvements and $75,000 for a shelter from CIP priorities; and whether to repave eight streets with a $200,000 contract or invest in one-time equipment (roughly $500,000) that staff say could let the town pave 10 streets a year when financed over several years.

Commissioner Hamilton pressed for clarity on debt and revenue timing; Drew reiterated that property-tax receipts tend to arrive in bulk in December–January while sales tax is received monthly, and said the town budgeted about $4,150,000 for sales tax this year.

The workshop will inform the strategic-budget retreat in March, and staff said members should send questions to Chancellor Ashley or Drew in writing so answers can be shared with the full group.