COM 0162.000 2022-2024 - Laserfiche WebLink

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($46.9 million). $67.2 million of the fund balance restricted for highways, streets and abandoned vehicles was due to the General Excise Tax fund that was created in fiscal year 2019,which accounts for the general excise tax surcharge that became effective in fiscal year 2019. The fund balance of the General Excise Tax Fund increased by $29.3 million due primarily to increased sales activity throughout the County,which also correlates to the increased levels of tourism. The general fund is the chief operating fund of the County. At the end of the current fiscal year, unrestricted fund balance of the general fund was$81.6 million,while total fund balance increased to $111.6 million. As a measure of the general fund's liquidity,it may be useful to compare both unrestricted fund balance and total fund balance to total fund expenditures. Unrestricted fund balance represents 21 percent of total general fund expenditures,while total fund balance represents 29 percent of that same amount. The fund balance of the County's general fund increased by$23.0 million during the current fiscal year as compared to an increase of$3.7 million in the prior year. Key factors in this substantial increase ($19.3 million)over last year's increase are as follows: • A positive increase of$17.5 million(5 percent)in real property tax revenues and$12.8 million(100%)in County transient accommodations tax were offset by a$74.6 million (56%) decrease in intergovernmental revenues. As previously stated,the decrease that the County experienced in operating grants and contributions was primarily a reflection of the fact that most of the grants that the County expended during the previous fiscal year was not extended into the current fiscal year. Most notably was the CARES Act grant previously discussed above that was recorded in the general fund. The negative impact of such a large decrease in one aspect of revenues was mitigated by increases in the other categories of revenue,which most notably included an increase in property taxes and the County transient accommodations tax,both of which were discussed previously. • The negative impact of the increase in revenues was offset by decreases of$55.6 million(13 percent)in expenditures. As explained previously,the County no longer focused on funding costs related to emergency protective measures resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic,with the assistance of the financial aid that was received by the federal government. In the prior year,the County incurred approximately$77.1 million of expenditures while responding to the additional needs caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. These expenditures were represented just one of the many federal grants received by the County to assist in dealing with the additional financial burden resulting from the pandemic that did not occur in the current year. The fund balance of the County's capital projects fund decreased by $24.0 million(25 percent) during the current fiscal year. The decrease is primarily due to the fact that there was zero amount of other financing sources resulting from new issuances of debt by the County in the current fiscal year. Despite the absence new issuances of debt,the Capital projects fund incurred $52.8 million in capital expenditures,which was only$3.9 million less than the prior year and a decrease of only 7 percent. See discussion regarding construction activity during the current year in the capital asset section below. The debt service funds consist of the Bond Redemption Fund and the Interest Fund. These funds have combined total fund balances of$46.9 million, all of which is restricted for the payment of debt service. The net increase in the combined fund balances during the current year in the debt service funds was$1.8 million,which was a 4 percent change from the prior year. The increase in fund balance was lower than the increase experienced in the prior year due to the fact that the -24 -