Caswell County commissioners agree to use FY26 savings for ambulance remount, six sheriff vehicles and a one‑time staff bonus

Caswell County commissioners signaled consensus on June 4 to allocate one‑time FY26 savings toward emergency services and staff compensation while finalizing the FY27 budget.

At a work session, county staff told commissioners they had identified roughly $985,984 in nonrecurring FY26 savings available for one‑time uses. The county manager presented illustrative options that included a turnkey EMS ambulance remount priced in the staff presentation at about $275,000, replacement vehicles for the sheriff’s office (the presentation listed an uplift figure of about $351,000), and a one‑time employee bonus estimated at $346,000 for eligible staff.

"On paper for all two (paid) days for full‑time employees the value is about $113,000," the county manager told the board while outlining the fiscal impacts of additional paid days and other compensation options. Staff clarified the $113,000 figure does not capture overtime/backfill costs for emergency and public‑safety shifts.

EMS Director John told the board the department has seen roughly a 7% increase in call volume since 2022 and that several ambulances have exceeded their useful life; he described a remount as moving an existing patient‑care box to a new chassis and said the turnkey remount price on the table includes refurbishing systems and loading equipment.

After discussion, commissioners expressed support for paying cash now for the remount (rather than waiting to seek LGC approval), agreed to scale the sheriff vehicle request to six cars, and indicated a majority could live with the manager’s proposed one‑time bonus for employees. The board directed staff to prepare a budget amendment for the June 15 meeting that will appropriate the FY26 savings for these items.

The discussion included tradeoffs commissioners emphasized: the bonus is nonrecurring and does not add to base pay, the vacancy allowance in the proposed FY27 budget could reduce EMS staffing if not filled, and some departments still face frozen positions. Commissioners also asked staff to review vehicle take‑home policies after the budget process.

The manager said the one‑time purchases would not require a tax increase and that staff would return on June 15 with a formal budget amendment for the board to consider. The board adjourned after a motion by Commissioner Smith and a second from Commissioner Rose.

What happens next: staff will bring a budget amendment to the June 15 meeting appropriating the FY26 savings for the remount, sheriff vehicles and the one‑time employee bonus; commissioners also requested follow‑up work on fleet policy and school capital priorities.