"Guilford’s finances improve over last year’s"

"...Last year, the county spent about $24 million from its savings
to pay for budget shortfalls.

This year, County Manager Brenda Jones Fox wants to do it again,
to the tune of $30.8 million.

But because ...including more revenue from sales and property taxes,
Guilford is inching away from a savings disaster that many predicted last year.

Last year at budget time, after several years of ballooning debt,
diminishing revenues and no tax increases,
the county’s own number crunching showed savings of $69 million.

About $46.5 million of that
is what the North Carolina Local Government Commission recommended
that counties keep in reserve
to meet the minimum recommended amount of savings.

The county then proceeded to spend down nearly all that reserve,
leaving about $554,000 for emergencies.

This year, the outlook is a little better.

The county estimates
that even after dipping into its savings again this year to make its budget work,
it still will have $80.2 million left.

Once the recommended minimum reserve of $48.1 million is set aside
and the county spends down about $25.8 million to help balance its budget,
plus another $657,000 to help merge its mental health services,
the county will have about $5.6 million left.

...A tax increase last year — and another proposed for this year
— have helped put the county’s savings back in the black.

Joe Killian
MAY 2, 2012