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Pike County fiscal court warns $534,000 road-aid cut will force budget changes
Summary
Pike County Judge Jones told the fiscal court that a $534,000 reduction in county road aid from the legislature, combined with sharply higher diesel costs and falling mineral revenues, will force budget adjustments, including potential reductions to sheriff subsidies and use of surplus funds; the court submitted a first reading of the 2026 budget to state reviewers and plans follow-up talks with the sheriff and state finance officials.
Pike County Judge Jones warned the fiscal court on May 5 that the county will face significant budgetary pressure after the state reduced county road aid by $534,000. "The county road aid is being reduced by $534,000 by the by the our friends in the general assembly," Jones said, calling the cut "a substantial amount of money" for a department that relies heavily on road-aid funding.
The judge and other court members told colleagues the cut arrives alongside other cost drivers. Jones highlighted a recent jump in fuel prices for road crews, saying diesel costs rose 91.49% from March to April. He and Treasurer Frankie also pointed to higher health-insurance and liability costs, planned pay raises, and added magistrate salaries as compounding the shortfall.
Roy, who reviewed the budget documents, said two different budget versions were in circulation and flagged the need to reconcile differences before final adoption. "The budget that was presented for me to read it is different than the budget that was presented two weeks ago," Roy said. The court completed a first reading of the 2026 proposed fiscal ordinance and will send the document to the Department of Local Government (DOG) for review as required; no final vote was taken at this meeting.
Court members debated options to cover the gap. Jones said he had proposed taking a small portion out of the sheriff's subsidy and using surplus carry-forward for the remainder; others warned that cutting sheriff funding could require departmental adjustments. Treasurer Frankie said property taxes and other major revenues will not arrive until later in the year and urged a prompt resolution. "If we don't have a budget in place July 1st, there's a budget there; the court can act on whatever they want to do," Jones said, urging submission of a revised budget with the option to amend later.
The court agreed to pursue a targeted follow-up: Judge Jones and county staff will confer with the sheriff and the state local finance officer by phone and may call a special meeting to finalize adjustments. Members also noted that state action left county programs at risk: Diane and the judge said the legislature halved statewide home-meal-delivery funding, and local programs may need supplemental county funds to avoid service cutoffs for seniors.
What happens next: the fiscal court sent the revised budget (first reading) to DOG for review and scheduled staff-level talks with the sheriff and state finance officials to identify options; the court said it could amend the budget after state feedback. Any final decisions or additional cuts must be reflected in subsequent readings before the July 1 fiscal-year start.
Sources: court discussion and roll-call votes during the May 5 Pike County Fiscal Court meeting; first reading of 2026 budget submitted to the Department of Local Government.
