Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that the county pulled funding earmarked for the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, not the school system. CityView apologizes for the error.
Cumberland County will no longer include money earmarked for school resource officers (SROs) and crossing guards as part of the county’s funding for the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, which is included in the county’s proposed fiscal year 2024-25 budget, Commissioner Chairman Glenn Adams said at the board’s budget work session Thursday.
Those funds, Adams said, will be moved back into the county’s general fund, which is the government’s main pot of money for everyday spending. The change follows the news that the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office will cease to provide SROs and crossing guards to schools in local municipalities come July.
Adams also said that expenses related to automobiles used by the officers and crossing guard would be eliminated from the county’s budget. He appeared uncertain as to whether SROs would exist as part of the county’s personnel in future county budgets.
“I’ve had conversations with the manager because those funds are there,” Adams said, “and those positions may or may not exist [later]. We would look to pull those back into our general fund and the general fund of the county, along with the vehicles that they have, since those line items don’t exist anymore.”
At the short budget work session Thursday, the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners also discussed a few refinements to the recommended budget presented by County Manager Clarence Grier on May 23. The $584.3 million budget represents a 3.5% increase over last year’s budget. It does not raise property taxes, a circumstance that commissioners partially attributed to the change from a per capita property tax to an ad valorem property tax after fiscal year 2024-25.
The change will return about $10 million annually back to the county that had previously been allocated to municipalities under the per capita tax structure, Adams said. He hinted at the possibility of reducing the county property tax in future years, currently at 79.9 cents per $100 valuation.
“So, not speculating on the future, but if things hold out with the ad valorem, we may be even able to reduce that 79.9,” Adams said. “I’m not telling anybody we’re going to do that. But there’s a possibility on that.”
Commissioner Jimmy Keefe said the county had previously been “subsidizing services” to Cumberland municipalities under the per capita tax structure. He said those tax dollars had made the tax rate of the county seem “artificially” high compared to peer counties utilizing an ad valorem structure.
“To the citizens who react, please look at the numbers, look at the differences,” Keefe said.
Members of the Fayetteville City Council have been critical of the change, which will leave the city with a deficit they’re making up with a property tax increase of 5 cents. In particular, Council Member Deno Hondros has been vocal about opposition to the change, drawing controversy on Facebook this past weekend for posts about the county’s high-peer-city tax rate.
Other budget changes, requests
Grier recommended a few more changes to the budget, namely more dollars to outside agencies requesting funds:
- An additional $1,000 for the Child Advocacy Center
- An additional $96,297 for the Cumberland County Coordinating Council on Older Adults, which operates the Meals on Wheels program
Meanwhile, Commissioner Veronica Jones said she would like to have a discussion about funding the Cape Fear Regional Theatre, which the city contributes to but the county does not. Emphasizing the need to support the theater as it undergoes a $22 million renovation and expansion project, Jones requested that the commissioners consider a contribution of $700,000 annually over the next five years.
“We, as a commission board, know the value that the arts and culture plays in the quality of life, economic development, and attracting and retaining businesses,” Jones said. “So I do believe that it’s our time to make an investment.”
Jones said her request could be continued until the next budget work session, tentatively set for June 11. The county commissioners will hold a public hearing, a necessary step before approval, on the proposed budget at 7 p.m. on June 5 in Room 118 of the Cumberland County Courthouse. The county must approve a budget by July 1, when the new fiscal year begins.
Contact Evey Weisblat at eweisblat@cityviewnc.com or 216-527-3608.
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