Lake County is gearing up to approve a new $601 million budget — with more than $42 million in increases — after officials held a series of hearings this week to comb through line items across the government’s departments.
With the new fiscal year a little more than a month away, the Lake County Board is expected to approve the final budget for 2022 at its Nov. 9 meeting. After going through the budget with other committees, Finance Committee members capped off the hearings, held Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, with discussions on potential new items to be included in the spending plan.
The total cost of the new items considered came in at about $9 million, and included items ranging from equipment, to staffing changes and pay increases. Some items will be discussed again when board members consider what to do with American Rescue Plan Act funds (ARPA).
The new budget will represent close to a 7.6% increase, or more than $42 million when compared to last year. Almost all of that increase is expected to go toward personnel and benefits, capital projects and other contractual services, according to the budget overview from the county.
In its 2021 budget, the county made $14 million in cuts due to the coronavirus pandemic when compared to 2020.
At the beginning of the hearings, county officials stressed that the budget as it stood was balanced, meaning any additions made in new programming would have to result in cuts somewhere else.
“It’s been an exceedingly tight budget year, as I’m sure you’re all aware,” County Administrator Gary Gibson said.
Federal funding from ARPA was also discussed. The county is expecting to receive about $135 million in funding from ARPA. During the hearings this week, committee members said they wanted to keep discussions on ARPA separate from the budget, as ARPA is a one-time revenue source. There is also a meeting scheduled to discuss the use of ARPA funds next week.
“The ARPA funding is a very short-term answer to how are we going to fund this, but it’s not the solution,” Board member Paul Frank said. “We need to make reductions going forward.”
Looking forward, the county’s budget overview document states that the 2022 budget includes “cautious” optimism for a continued recovery, as several sources of tax revenue hurt by the pandemic have rebounded beyond the county’s expectations.
Before final approval on Nov. 9, the county’s committees will have a second chance to discuss the budget at another series of optional hearings next week. The budget process began in May 2021 with staff reviewing the document through September. The new fiscal year begins on Dec. 1.