Minutes - 20020523 - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

APPROVED 10!1102 MINUTES ORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS BUDGET PRESENTATION AND WORK SESSION May 23, 2002 The Orange County Board of Commissioners met for a budget presentation and a work session on Thursday, May 23, 2002 at 7:30 p.m. in the F. Gordon Battle Courtroom in Hillsborough, North Carolina. COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Chair Barry Jacobs and Commissioners Margaret W. Brown, Moses Carey, Jr., Alice M. Gordon, and Stephen Halkiotis COUNTY ATTORNEY PRESENT: Geoffrey Gledhill and S. Sean Borhanian COUNTY STAFF PRESENT: County Manager John M. Link, Jr., Assistant County Manager Rod Visser, and Clerk to the Board Beverly A. Blythe (All other staff members will be identified appropriately below} NOTE: ALL DOCUMENTS REFERRED TO IN THESE MINUTES ARE IN THE PERMANENT AGENDA FILE IN THE CLERK'S OFFICE. 1. BUDGET PRESENTATION County Manager John Link made a PowerPoint presentation. He thanked Budget Director Donna Dean, Paul Laughton, Alisha Middleton, Personnel Director Elaine Holmes, Assistant County Manager Rod Visser, Finance Director Ken Chavious, Director of Purchasing and Central Services Pam Jones, and all of the staff that have worked so hard to pull this budget together. He also thanked the two school superintendents and their staff for their cooperation. The proposed General Fund Budget totals $122,850,400. This is a 4.9°~ increase from last year, which is an increase of $5.7 million. The proposed general fund tax rate increase is 4.5 cents, which will be 85 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. Nearly two cents of the proposed increase is attributable to funds needed to pay debt service on the sale of the 1997 voter-approved bonds. In terms of the past year, it is mast Hatable that Orange County remains #1 in the State for education funding. The per-pupil allocation in Orange County is $1,000 more than the second leading County. The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School system opened Smith Middle School on the campus of Chapel Hill High School and Seawell Elementary School. Construction has begun on Elementary School #9 located in the Meadowmont subdivision. The Orange County School system will open Cedar Ridge High School in August. The voters approved a $75 million band referendum in November. This will offer residents across the County progressive opportunities for affordable housing, senior centers, parks, recreation, and educational facilities. Since April 2000, almost 800 acres in Orange County have been protected through the Lands Legacy Program. The Central Orange Senior Center which is located in the Meadowlands Business Park in Hillsborough opened in January,. This is a temporary building for the center. The County Commissioners appointed an Innovation and Efficiency Committee, which recommended that the County hire Segal and Associates, an independent CPA firm to review revenues received by the County. Segal and Associates reviewed the County's purchasing practices and found them to be sound. The firm discovered additional sales tax reimbursements of $563,000. One school system has also participated and we hope the other one will as well. General Fund Revenue Highlights The County's financial picture remains solid. The fund balance remains strong. We are appropriating $2.4 million from the fund balance for this year's budget. This is $1.2 million less than last year's appropriation. The real property tax base increased 4-4.5°~. This increased the real property tax