Carter Giegerich for The Franklin Press
The proposed fiscal year 2022-23 budget for the Town of Franklin passed almost unanimously on June 21, with Town Council member Mike Lewis casting the one dissenting vote.
The budget was passed as presented during the June 21 meeting, with a three-cent increase to the ad valorem tax rate, a bump that led to Lewis casting his opposing vote.
Lewis said he had concerns about how this year’s property tax revaluation might impact some members of the community in the coming year.
“We sort of know what this revaluation is going to do, and it’s going to affect the ones who can least afford it,” Lewis said during the meeting. “I know we’re talking about maybe a $70-100 a year increase, but some people, and the people I think the revaluation’s going to affect, that’s keeping their heat on in the wintertime. Every dollar counts.”
Lewis said he would be willing to vote in the affirmative for a one-cent tax increase, but he did not feel that the proposed increase was appropriate in the current economic climate.
According to this year’s budget document a one-cent increase to the ad valorem rate would yield an estimated $71,667 in tax revenue. Based on that estimate, adopting a one-cent increase rather than a three-cent increase would require the town to reduce expenditures by $143,334 in order to maintain a balanced budget.
In her introduction to this year’s proposed budget, Town Manager Amie Owens predicted anything less than a three-cent increase would be insufficient to cover the town’s projected costs in the coming year.
“Due to circumstances that are beyond the control of staff including supply chain and material cost issues, we are projecting revenues will not equally offset expenditures in the coming year,” Owens wrote. “Therefore, it is necessary for Town Council to consider a recommendation to increase the ad valorem tax from $0.32 to $0.35 to properly adjust.”
According to Owens, the largest contributors to rising costs are personnel related. The town is faced with a 5.4% increase in employee health insurance premiums and a 1.2% increase in retirement expenses, which represent a $52,150 increase from last year’s figures. The budget also accounts for two new positions under the water/sewer fund and three additional positions under the Fire Department fund, the latter of which will be covered by a fire district tax increase approved in the county budget. The city’s fire tax will increase from .0545 to .0700, generating an additional $252,694 for the fire department.
The state of North Carolina requires the town to operate with a revenue-neutral budget, and in order to accomplish that this year the town will appropriate $175,633 from the fund balance. The finalized budget came in at a total of $10,430,716 for Fiscal Year 2022-23.
To see the full budget and Owens’ budget message to the Franklin Town Council, visit franklinnc.com/proposed-budget-franklin-nc-2022-2023.html.
The next Franklin Town Council meeting will be at 6 p.m. Tuesday, July 5 at Town Hall.