BY STACIE LETT CAIN
Chief Financial Officer Christopher Quinn has advised Mooresville commissioners to be prepared for some difficult choices if the growth in town revenues slows in the coming months.
“If our revenue continues to flatten out, and our expenditures continue to increase at the expected 3 percent, then our revenues are not going to match up with our expenses,” Quinn told the board during last week’s annual retreat. “We are going to have some hard decisions to make going forward.”
Looking at numbers through December 31, 2024, the town’s budget appears healthy. In the General Fund, which is the primary operating fund for the town, the current expenditures and encumbrances sit at 53 percent, which is $49,742,518 compared to actual revenues of $60,243,318.
“We are coming in at about 50%, a little over, of the total budget, which is expected because we are about 50 percent through the year,” Quinn explained. “Our revenues are coming in as expected so we are strong in the General Fund.”
The same strong showing is also seen in both the Utility Fund and Stormwater Fund, according to Quinn. Revenues from utility bills have grown 4 percent annually since 2020. Through December 31, revenues were up almost 3 percent.
“This is a direct correlation to the number of new accounts we are getting,” he said.
Those new accounts are coming as a result of the often controversial new developments being approved through the town board. From July 1 – December 31, 2024, a total of 819 permits were issued. During the prior year, 1,394 permits were issued.
“We really didn’t get started until the beginning of September last year. That was the first foray into the building inspections in this town, so it’s not an even allocation,” Quinn explained. “But it is interesting to note.”
Quinn’s outlook for the fiscal year 2026 budget came with a warning.
“I get asked a lot when we are looking ahead to the budget, how do you pull together and figure out where the budget is going to come in,” Quinn explained. “It’s simpler than you think. We look at revenue projections and where we think we are going, how we grew last year, and how we expect to grow this year.”
For fiscal year 2025, the town has an estimated tax growth of $1.4 million in property tax revenues and a $500,000 increase in sales tax revenues.
Increasing expenditures by 3 percent require $2.7 million in revenue.
“This is something we just wanted to give people a heads up about,” Quinn explained.
And even though the property tax increases from newly approved developments will come in to play to alleviate some of that difference, Quinn advised that the town won’t see revenues from those developments for some time.
“Even though we are seeing decisions being made today for the good of our community for new development, it might take two, three, even four years before those developments have an impact on our budget.”
Sales tax, another factor in revenues, are also worth keeping an eye on.
“Even though we are a minority here in our area that we are still seeing a 3 percent sales tax growth, due to being a still growing community, that is flattening out from where we have seen it the past few years,” Quinn explained.
Variables like the Highway 150 expansion project could adversely affect that tax stream.
“I am sure there are people all over our community making alternative shopping plans to avoid that area during this construction,” he said. “We need to think about what that impact is going to be on our sales tax going forward.”
Discussions surfaced about options available to compensate for some of the revenue slow down, one being an increase in the town’s solid waste fee.
“About $2 million comes out of the General Fund to fund solid waste,” Quinn explained. “We need that $2 million to do other things like enhancements to police and fire and other stuff we want to do in the budget. I need a way to pay for all of these things and raising the solid waste fee is a way to reconsider allocation of funds.”
Looking at other municipalities, solid waste fees range $3.66 in 2024 for the City of Concord to $27 in Hickory. Mooresville currently comes in at $10 with an increase to $12 in 2025. But discussions of an even higher fee, from $17 to $21, could reduce or eliminate the necessity of pulling $2 million from the General Fund.
“We know there is a wide range of services offered between cities for the amount that they provide,” Mayor Chris Carney added. “We hear all the time how happy people are with the services they get and they wouldn’t cut those for anything. It is truly something we hear most often. We’ve got to figure out the financial side, but we all agree that changing that service isn’t something we are interested in.”
Commissioners did not make a decision about a possible fee increase.