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Commissioners reduce pet adoption fees, add utility inspector, approve $601,044 pumper purchase; receive utilities policy and FY25 Q2 finance report
Summary
The board approved temporary reduced pet adoption fees, authorized one new utility inspector in Public Works, and ratified an emergency purchase of a rescue pumper for $601,044 with insurance proceeds and a fund balance draw; staff presented a draft utilities customer policy and unaudited FY25 Q2 financials showing revenues up roughly $2.7M year‑over‑year.
At the Feb. 11 meeting the Board of Commissioners approved several administrative and budget items. The county manager introduced a staff request to lower pet adoption fees for a short promotion and related community events; the program and fee reductions were approved as presented.
The board also approved adding one utility inspector position to the Public Works Water and Sewer Division. Public Works staff explained the request was driven by county growth and the division’s need for more prompt inspections; the motion to approve passed.
In a separate budget action the board ratified an emergency purchase of a rescue pumper for the county fire department at a cost of $601,044 after the department lost a truck in December. The fire department representative said insurance proceeds of about $419,000 were expected and the remaining ~$181,086 would be covered from fund balance; commissioners approved the purchase and the necessary budget adjustment.
Staff also presented (for later adoption) a draft utilities service policy that outlines account setup, service connections, billing and delinquency procedures, deposits, and tampering/theft responses. Commissioners asked staff to clarify customer definitions and commercial/industrial language before returning with a revised draft.
Finally finance staff presented unaudited FY25 second quarter financials: general‑fund revenues approved at $65,018,308, with year‑to‑date revenue up roughly $2.7 million versus the comparable period last year driven mainly by higher property tax collections and sales tax; the presenter noted December sales tax collections hit about $1.9 million, the highest monthly collections in five years. Commissioners asked follow‑up questions about department variances, SPLOST distributions, and next steps for presenting water/sewer results.
