Asheville – Buncombe County has announced its intention to raise the tax rate by one cent. The current rate stands at 51.76 cents per hundred dollars of valuation. The work-in-progress budget presented to the commissioners during a recent worksession indicated projected expenditures of $438 million, which exceed revenues by $22.5 million.
Hurricane Helene is primarily responsible for the budgetary pressures. A press release from the county states, “According to the latest data available, Buncombe County has spent $19.8 million on Helene-related costs, has committed an additional $8.1 million for future projects, and overall estimates that all recovery costs will be $52 million.”
The county’s insurance will cover damage to buildings but not to the land. While FEMA may assist with this, county leadership is now uncertain whether expenses believed to be reimbursable by FEMA will arrive in time to aid next year’s budget or be reimbursed at all. At risk of being non-reimbursable are: $600,000 for the Helene Resource Center, $486,000 for community navigators, $145,000 for coordination, $76,000 for program management, and another $229,000 for watershed protection.
Finance Director Melissa Moore explained that it remains unclear what will qualify for reimbursement from FEMA and how much will be reimbursed, but staff is diligently working to provide the necessary documentation. Furthermore, FEMA reimbursements typically take 3-6 years to process. It is not uncommon for the federal government to change its interpretation of reimbursement rules; this year, the situation is particularly volatile with the future of FEMA itself at stake.
Chair Amanda Edwards noted that the FEMA requirements are straining staff resources. To illustrate this point, Budget Director John Hudson mentioned that FEMA is measuring all the grills in the parks because they will only reimburse replacements of the same size. Compliance is necessitating significant overtime, which is not reimbursable by FEMA.
The tax increase would be essential following expenditure-cutting strategies, including a hiring freeze expected to save $7.5 million. The $10.3 million the county allocates for community investments—such as housing assistance, early childhood education, and reparations—will be reduced or eliminated for the upcoming fiscal year.
The county will not initiate any new capital projects that are not funded by either the federal government or future debt service. The $4 million allocated for capital projects this year will cover ambulances, renovations and repairs at the animal shelter and detention center, replacement of all 14 courthouse elevators, communication tower road repairs, and a new $700,000 public restroom at Lake Julian Park.
With 9,020 homes destroyed by the hurricane, projected property tax collections were anticipated to be lower; however, they are currently running $2.1 million above estimates. Ambulance revenues are $1.3 million above estimates, but this is offset by ongoing increases in demand for emergency services. Additionally, permitting revenues have risen significantly; requests for permits for well drilling have surged by 300%.
Before Hurricane Helene, nearly $10 million in personnel spending increases were planned. These include changes mandated by the state regarding retirement spending, increased utilization and administration of health insurance benefits, and a 3.09% cost-of-living adjustment for employees.
The county drew down $14.8 million from its fund balance this year and expects to draw down $11.3 million next year. This will push it below the county’s minimum requirement of 15% of the general budget.
The county will not review budget proposals from Asheville City and Buncombe County schools or A-B Tech until May 2. County Manager Avril Pinder stated that each year she budgets according to the formulaic constraints proposed by former interim county manager George Wood; then the commissioners consider the schools’ requests and often allocate more funds. Last year, the county spent $112 million on K-12 schools when the formula would have called for only $95 million.
Elected leaders recognize that there can never be enough funding for children. This is why education and law enforcement are typically prioritized in public discussions to justify budget increases. The public hearing for the budget will take place on May 20.