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Proposed budget presented by county manager on Monday

By Christa Price

 

POLK COUNTY—On Monday, May 12, the Polk County Board of Commissioners held a special meeting to discuss the county budget for the 2025-26 Fiscal Year. County Manager Marche Pittman presented the proposed fund budget, which totals $54,461,072. 

The county is recommending an increase to the revenue-neutral rate by two cents, resulting in a proposed rate of 0.4342. The increase is due to construction costs of the Polk County YMCA, which are anticipated to begin by the end of the year.

Major capital items in the proposed budget include $495,000 for new patrol vehicles for the Sheriff’s Department, $70,000 for an inmate transport van for the jail, and $209,200 for transportation vans. Cross-department workstation replacements ($124,000), EMS supplies ($145,489), a new truck for NC forestry ($27,000), and a new oven for the Senior Center ($6,000) were also included.

Various personnel budget changes were also proposed, including a 5.5% increase in health insurance costs for employees, a state-mandated employer contribution of 5.1% and 7% to be paid to the general and law enforcement retirement system for county employees, 2.5% Cost-of-Living Adjustment increase for all staff, 2.5% merit-based pay increase for all qualifying employees and additional funds allocated to assist with re-organization and certification advancements within departments.

The Board of Commissioners will hold a budget work session on Monday, May 19, at 1 p.m. at the Bryant H. Womack Justice & Administration Building to discuss the proposed budget. On June 2 at 5 p.m., a meeting will be held for citizen comments regarding budget plans.

The final adoption of the 2025-26 Fiscal Year budget is scheduled for June 16. Detailed information on the budget review process and supplemental documents can be found at www.PolkNC.gov/25-26BudgetInformation.

The Bryant H. Womack Justice & Administration Building is located at 40 Courthouse Street in Columbus.