Annual Budget

Budget Overview

Property tax is the #1 funding source for county services across North Carolina, making up roughly 61% of general fund revenue statewide. Here in Cleveland County, those dollars fund everything from education and public safety to health services and community development.

2026-2027 Annual Budget
Budget PreparationEach year, the budget cycle begins in January, when department directors receive instructions and forms for preparing their budget requests for the subsequent financial year. When submitted in March, these budget requests are reviewed by the County Manager and the County Finance Director.

Budget FocusThe Primary Fund, the County's single largest accounting fund, contains the budget for the vast majority of County departments. However, the two largest County departments and certain other functions are recorded separately. For budgeting purposes, the County has separate accounting funds for the Social Services Department, the Health Department, the Employee Wellness Clinic, Court Facilities, Schools Property Tax, Workers' Compensation, Health Insurance, and Dental Insurance. To equalize estimated revenues in the budget with appropriations (or estimated expenditures) in the budget, the Primary Fund transfers some of its resources to these other accounting funds that lack self-sufficiency. The Primary Fund is one of many accounting funds that make up the County's General Fund.

In the budget files on totals per fund, you will see a list of these accounting funds under the heading "GENERAL FUND". When these individual accounting funds are combined into a single operating fund, the resulting fund is referred to as the County's General Fund. For year-end reporting, no mention is made of these individual accounting funds while attention focuses on the General Fund as a whole. Since transfers are only reported when the transfers are going to or coming from another reported fund, the transfers from the Primary Fund to these other accounting funds that make up the County's General Fund are not reported. Neither budgetary activity nor actual activity related to these transfers are reported.

Requested Beginning BudgetDepartment directors consider needs for the upcoming budget year, whether contracts or contract prices have changed or may change, whether other pricing has changed or may change, whether additional staff is needed or whether any positions can be abolished, and whether special supplies must be purchased. These identified needs are incorporated into their budget requests for next year. This never-ending process is not complete when the department directors formally submit a request before mid-March.

Recommended Beginning BudgetThe County Manager considers many factors in transitioning from the departmental requests to his recommended beginning budget. No later than June 1 according to state statutes, the County Manager, in the role of the County's Budget Officer, submits a recommended beginning budget to the County Commissioners. Typically, in Cleveland County, the recommended beginning budget is revealed by mid-May prior to the new fiscal year that starts July 1. A copy of the Recommended Beginning Budget is retained at the County Manager's office for public review and inspection prior to adoption of the budget ordinance.

Then, the Board of County Commissioners will receive the budget requests and the County Manager's recommendations. The Board may increase or decrease the recommended beginning budget of any department, but the law requires that it make adequate provisions for public schools, social services, elections, the Register of Deeds, and the Sheriff.

No earlier than ten days after the recommended beginning budget is presented to the Board, and no later than July 1, the Board shall adopt a Budget Ordinance to which the County government shall adhere. The County Commissioners will usually hold a public hearing and adopt the beginning budget ordinance at the first meeting in June. The County Commissioners will follow this timeframe to allow for public input into the budget process. Throughout the year, the Board shall review any subsequent request for increases or decreases in revenues and expenditures. If approved by the County Commissioners, these changes are incorporated into the County budget.

The following selections provide you with information on the adopted budget ordinance for several years. The budget message comes from the County Manager and highlights important budgetary information. The budget ordinance recaps estimated receipts for the major sources of revenue and sets spending limits for each County department and all funds. Governmental accounting is often called "fund accounting" since the County's operations are separated into several accounting funds. The budget work papers focus on the sources and uses of funding in the Primary Fund, where property taxes provide about 69% of revenues. The Primary Fund also contains more than half of the County's total operating budget. Also, the budget work papers include a list of all accounting funds and their total budget and a list of transfers between funds and their amounts.