Latest / Saluda County Unplugged / The County Budget Part 4 - So... What Actually Changed This Year
Transcript
- Josh Morton: Over the last three episodes in our series, we've talked about what the county budget pays for. We followed a nine one one call from the moment the phone rings, and we've looked at everything county government is doing while most of us go about our day. But now it's time to answer the question people usually ask first. What changed this year? The short answer is that Saluda County's general fund budget increased by about one point two million dollars, but that number doesn't tell the whole story. Some services cost more, some revenue increased, some budget lines actually went down. And nearly half of the apparent increase came from accounting changes that made existing activity more visible. So today we're going beyond the headline number, what grew, what stayed the same, and what does the county expect to accomplish with the additional money? does a bigger budget automatically mean county government got bigger? Let's find out. This is Saluda County Unplugged. Welcome back to Saluda County Unplugged. I'm Rachel. And I'm Josh. Today is the fourth installment of our five part budget series. During the first three episodes, we intentionally focused on services before getting too deep into the numbers. That was important because a budget line item doesn't mean much until you understand what the people behind that line item are actually responsible for doing. But today we're bringing those two pieces together. We're going to compare last year's budget to this year's budget and talk about the changes that stood out to us. And we still have our bonus episode coming. That's when we'll open the actual budget document, explain the different revenue categories, talk about funds and reserves, and show you how to read the numbers for yourself. Today is a little different. This episode isn't about explaining every line in the budget. It's about answering one question. What changed and what does that actually mean? Let's begin with the number that most people will notice. Last year, Saluda County's general fund budget was approximately $18 million. This year, it's approximately $19.2 million. The exact increase is just under $1.2 million or about 6.6%. If that's the only information you hear, it would be reasonable to assume county government expanded by 6.6%. But once we compared the two budgets line by line, we realized it wasn't that simple. And that may be the most important point we make today. A budget can get larger for several different reasons. It can increase because the county added a service or hired more people. It can increase because fuel, insurance, equipment, utilities, professional services, and everything else became more expensive. It can increase because the county expects to receive more money from another source. Or it can increase because transactions that were already taking place are now being shown more clearly in the budget. This year includes a little bit of each of those things. And that distinction is important. If an expense is added to the budget along with an equal amount of new revenue, the budget becomes larger, but taxpayers aren't necessarily being asked to fund the entire increase. The document is simply showing more of the county's financial activity. That's why we keep saying you can't judge a budget by one number. You have to understand what actually changed. Two of the clearest examples of this involve building codes and the county airport. Let's start with building codes. In last year's summary, building codes did not appear as its own expense line. This year, it appears with a budget of approximately $304,500. If you're comparing the two documents, that looks like a brand new $304,500 expense. But that's not what happened. Building permits were already being issued. Inspections were already taking place. The activity already existed. This year, the permit revenue and the expenses associated with providing those services are being presented more directly in the budget. In other words, building codes didn't suddenly appear this year. The budget is simply giving people a clearer picture of what the department collects and what it costs to operate. That increases both sides of the budget. Revenue goes up because permit fees are shown. Expenses go up because inspection and operating costs are shown. The total budget becomes larger, but that doesn't mean the county invented a new three hundred and four thousand five hundred dollar program. The airport's another good example. Its budget increased from approximately $24,000 to a little over $216,000. That's an increase of about $192,000. At first glance, that looks dramatic, but a large part of that change comes from showing both sides of the airport's fuel operation. The county purchases aviation fuel. Pilots then purchase that fuel from the airport. If the budget shows the fuel sale as revenue, it also has to show the purchase of the fuel as an expense. And that's an important accounting lesson. If the county buys something for resale, the purchase isn't free just because the revenue eventually comes back in. The budget should show both transactions. And that makes the airport budget look much larger, but it also makes the document more complete and transparent. And when you combine the new building codes presentation with the airport change, Those two lines account for approximately $497,000. That's more than two-fifths of the entire $1.2 million increase. So before we even discuss personnel, equipment, or the rising cost of services, nearly 42% of the apparent increase can be traced to those two accounting changes, which are not actually operational changes, but just changes in how the information is presented. That doesn't make the expenses imaginary, but it does mean that the numbers needed context. Now let's look at the revenue side. The general fund increased by approximately $1.2 million, but only about $257,000 of that increase is expected to come from additional property tax revenue. That's roughly 22% of the overall increase. So where does the rest come from? The same answer we gave in episode one, a little bit from a lot of different places. The broad tax category, which includes more than real property taxes, increased by about $311,000. License, permit, and fee revenue increased by nearly three hundred thirty two thousand dollars, largely reflecting the building codes change we just discussed. Intergovernmental revenue increased by approximately three hundred five thousand dollars. And that category includes monies received from the state and other governmental sources. Changes for services increased by about seventy six thousand dollars, and miscellaneous revenue increased by approximately one hundred seventy nine thousand dollars. Fines and forfeitures were actually budgeted slightly lower. So once again, the story isn't that every revenue source went up. Some grew, one declined, and some of the largest changes reflect transactions that are now being presented differently. This is where comparing only the total can create the wrong impression. It's easy to hear that the budget increased by one point two million dollars and assume that property owners are being asked to contribute an additional one point two million. But that isn't what the numbers show. Most of the increase is expected to come from somewhere other than additional property tax revenue. That doesn't mean property taxes aren't important. They still remain the county's largest local revenue source, but they aren't paying for this entire increase by themselves. Now let's turn to expenses. The biggest theme in this year's budget is the same theme we've discussed throughout this series. Public safety continues to represent the county's largest financial commitment. The Sheriff's Office increased by approximately $107,000. EMS increased by about $102,000. Fire service increased by approximately $122,000. Emergency management increased nearly $67,000. And the detention center increased by about $36,000. Those five areas alone increased by more than $434,000. And that doesn't include the school resource officers, the coroner's office, victim services, dispatch, or other public safety related lines. But it's important to understand what those increases represent. Emergency services operate 24 hours a day. We don't close for holidays. We don't stop when fuel becomes more expensive. We don't get to delay replacing critical equipment because prices went up. And when personnel costs increase, those departments feel that pressure quickly because we have to maintain coverage around the clock. The work sessions leading up to the budget also revealed some of the specific pressures departments are facing. The coroner discussed higher professional service costs, including increased autopsy fees. The sheriff discussed employee compensation and the challenge of maintaining a competitive pay structure. County officials discussed the temporary cost of operating during the transition to the new detention center. EMS discussed personnel needs and the possibility of using additional transport capacity to generate revenue that could help offset Those conversations show why a budget is more than a spreadsheet. Every increase has a story behind it. Sometimes that story is growth. Sometimes, like in the case of the Emergency Management Division, it's that a function of county government along with a position was transferred from one department into another. Sometimes it's the cost of retaining qualified employees. Sometimes it's a service becoming more expensive even though the county is providing essentially the same level of service. And sometimes it's a temporary operational challenge like transitioning between detention facilities. The important takeaway is that the largest increases are concentrated in areas residents have consistently identified as priorities. Emergency response, law enforcement, fire protection, and the systems that support them. That doesn't mean every request could be funded. It means the final budget reflects the difficult work of deciding which needs could be addressed with the revenue available. Public safety isn't the only area that changed. The information technology budget increased by approximately $77,000. And that may not sound as exciting as an ambulance, a fire truck, or a patrol vehicle, but as we discussed in episode three, technology supports almost every county service. Dispatch systems depend on it, financial systems depend on it, property records depend on it. Email, cybersecurity, document storage, payroll, and communication between departments all depend on it. Technology is one of those things most people don't notice until it fails. A computer server doesn't have flashing lights. Nobody takes a photograph beside a new cybersecurity system, but keeping those systems reliable and secure is part of maintaining county operations. A technology failure doesn't just affect the IT department. It can affect every department all at once. Solid waste also increased by approximately sixty one thousand dollars. Roads and bridges increased by about twenty six thousand dollars. And during the budget process, the county also discussed renewing leases onto motor graders. Those machines are essential to maintaining unpaved roads and completing other road work throughout the county. The monthly lease payments are substantial. But so is the cost of purchasing and maintaining heavy equipment. Elections increase by approximately thirty-six thousand dollars. That's another service where the workload can change dramatically depending on the election calendar, equipment needs, staffing, training, and legal requirements. Recreation increased by a little over $17,000. And several smaller departments saw modest changes as their operating costs and responsibilities evolved. And none of those increases exists in isolation. Road maintenance affects ambulances, school buses, deputies, businesses, and every resident who travels those roads. Technology supports almost everyone. Elections require coordination across the county. Solid waste affects public health, convenience, and the appearance of the community. And that's the interconnection that we've been talking about throughout this entire series. A dollar may appear under one department's name, but the benefits often reach much further. Here's another part of the story that can get lost when people hear only the total increase. Not every budget went up. Some lines were reduced. The general maintenance budget decreased by approximately $45,000. dispatch decreased by nearly $28,000. Magistrate Court decreased by approximately $27,000. The County Council and Administration line decreased by almost 17,000 Economic development decreased by 5,000. Retiree insurance and annual leave were also budgeted slightly lower. A lower budget doesn't automatically mean a department is providing less service. It may reflect staffing changes, a one-time expense may have ended, a cost may have moved to another line item, or the county may simply expect to spend less in that category. That's why increases and decreases both require context. But it is worth pointing out that the county did not simply take every department's previous budget and add money to it. Some areas increased, some decreased, and some stayed almost exactly the same. For example, Tri-County Public Defender and the juvenile justice line remained unchanged. Behavioral Health and the Health Department also remained unchanged. The Soil and Water Conservation District remained unchanged. And employment compensation remained unchanged. That may not make for an exciting headline, but it's part of answering the question honestly. This year's budget is not a story where everything got bigger. It's a mixture of increased cost, changing priorities, new accounting presentations, and areas that remained stable. One thing that became clear while reading the budget work session minutes is that departments brought forward more needs than the county could immediately fund. That isn't unusual. Every department can identify equipment that needs replacing, positions that would improve service, pay adjustments that could help retain employees, and projects that would make operations more efficient. But a budget isn't a list of everything the county would like to do. It's a list of what the county believes it can responsibly fund this year. During the May work session, Council was told the proposed budget still had a gap of approximately three hundred and twenty one thousand dollars. Departmental cuts had already been considered, and some state revenue figures were still uncertain. At that point, the final budget had not yet been balanced. That tells us something important about the process. The final number didn't appear overnight. It changed as revenue estimates became clearer, requests were reviewed, and council decided which additions could be supported. That's another reason residents sometimes see different totals during the budget process. At first reading, council is considering an early version. At second reading, that number will change. Work sessions happen, revenue estimates are updated, positions or purchases are added, removed, or adjusted. But by the time the final budget is adopted, it will look very different from the version discussed several weeks earlier. That isn't indecision, it's the purpose of having a budget process. And there are trade-offs behind every choice. If the county increases employee compensation, that money has to come from somewhere. If it replaces heavy equipment, it may need to delay another purchase. If a grant funds most of a fire truck but requires a local match, the county still has to identify its share. If additional EMS personnel can generate new transport revenue, the county has to weigh the cost against the potential return. Those decisions rarely have one obviously perfect answer. So let's bring it all together. What actually changed this year? The general fund increased from approximately 18 million to 19.2 million, $257,000 of the increase came from additional property tax revenue. Two accounting and presentation changes involving building codes and airport fuel account for approximately $497,000 or more than two-fifths of the apparent growth. Public safety received some of the largest operational increases. The Sheriff's Office, EMS, Fire Service, Emergency Management, and Detention Center combined for an increase of more than $434,000. Information technology, solid waste, elections, roads and bridges, recreation and library support also increased. At the same time, several departments decreased or remained unchanged. So did the budget get bigger? Yes. Did every part of the county government get bigger? No. Did property taxes fund the entire increase? Not even close. And does every increase represent a brand new expense? No. Some of the growth reflects services and transactions that were already happening, but now are shown more clearly. That may be the most accurate summary of this year's budget. It isn't a dramatic reinvention of county government. It's an effort to keep existing services operating, respond to increasing costs, strengthen several priority areas, and present the county's financial activity more transparently. So Josh, here we are again. After comparing the two budgets, what is one thing that surprised you the most? I would have to say how misleading the total increase is without all the details. If someone told me the budget increased by $1.2 million, I would naturally assume county operations grew by $1.2 million. But then we found out that nearly half of that increase involved building codes and airport activity being presented more transparently. And only about $257,000 came from additional property tax revenue. It reminded me that the headline number is only the beginning of the story. I think mine was seeing how much of budgeting really is about maintaining the county's ability to provide services. There isn't one giant new project responsible for the increase. It's public safety, technology, solid waste, equipment, professional services, personnel, and dozens of smaller adjustments spread throughout the organization. The budget changed because the cost and responsibility of providing those services changed. budget series. We started out by asking what a county budget is really paying for. Then we followed what happens after someone dials 911. We looked at everything county government is doing while most of us go about our day. And today we explained what actually changed in the FY 2026-2027 budget. But we aren't finished yet. Next, we'll be wrapping up the series with a special bonus episode, how to read a county budget. We'll open the actual budget document and walk through it together. We'll explain revenue categories, departmental budgets, reserves, restricted funds, debt, and some of the accounting terms that can make government budgets difficult to understand. Our goal isn't just to explain this year's budget. It's to give you the tools to understand next year's budget and the one after that. Because transparency isn't simply publishing a document. It's helping people understand what the document means. Thanks for listening to Saluda County Unplugged. Have questions or an idea for an upcoming episode? Email us at publicinfo at salutacounty.sc.gov. We'd love to hear from you. And remember, if you put something somewhere so safe that even you can't find it, technically the system worked. We'll see you next week.