by Jackie Nunnery
LANCASTER—Lancaster supervisors on Thursday, April 11, inched closer to a final proposed budget for fiscal year 2024-25 during a related work session.
A public hearing has been set for Thursday, April 25, on a proposed county budget totaling $51,215,171, based on a $0.55 real property tax rate. The current real property tax is $0.63 per $100 of assessed value. As proposed, the total budget would represent a $3,643,332 increase over the current $47,469,839 budget.
All other tax rates remain unchanged with general personal property and motor vehicles at $2.04 per $100 of assessed value; machinery and tools at $1.52 per $100 of assessed value; merchant’s capital at $1.00 per $100 of assessed value; all other personal property unless exempted at $1.52 per $100 of assessed value.
Estimated expenditures would increase by $6,376,604 or 16.2% over the current year, with $2,259,225 of that coming in the school operating budget and another $2,932,514 going toward debt service related to new school construction. While the debt service related to the school will increase to $3.9 million in the third year, county administrator Don Gill pointed out $1 million in debt service would be retired by then. He added that the budget also included a 7% raise for all county staff plus absorbing a 4.1% increase in health insurance premiums. …
