JOHNSTON COUNTY – Johnston County Manager Rick Hester released his proposed 2023-2024 fiscal year budget this week. The $348 million spending proposal is up from the revised $337 million budget this fiscal year. (The 2022-2023 adopted budget was originally $309 million).
The proposal would keep the 73 cents per $100 valuation property tax rate unchanged, while funding more than three dozen new county employee positions.
Funds are included for a cost of living increase for all 1,500 county employees, however a specific amount has not been finalized, Hester said.
JCPS and JCC Funding
JCPS would receive less that requested next year, under the spending plant. Mr. Hester earmarked $80 million for Current Expenses and $3 million for Capital Improvements for JCPS, for a total of $83 million. That is $15.4 million less than what JCPS says they need to operate next year.
JCPS requested $88,497,179 in Current Expenses and $10 million for Capital Improvements for 2023-2024, for a total of $98,497.179.
Johnston County Public Schools received $85.5 million for Current Expenses and no money for Capital Improvements in the current 2022-2023 budget. (JCPS did transfer $8 million from Current Expenses to Capital Improvements during the current fiscal year.)
Johnston Community College would receive $6.5 million for Current Expenses and $850,000 for Capital Outlay in 2023-2024. JCC had requested $6.9 million for Current Expenses and $1.2 million for Capital Outlay. Funds are included to continue the JoCo Commissioners Promise Program.
New Positions
New county positions include:
Finance – 1 full time
Buildings & Grounds – 3 full time, 1 part time
Sheriff – 2 full time
Emergency Services – 2 full time for EMS
Planning – 2 full time
Child Support Enforcement – 1 full time attorney
Cooperative Extension – 1 current part time to full time status
Public Health – 3 full time
Department of Social Services – convert 10 temporary positions to permanent full-time, 2 new attorneys, 1 full time paralegal
Public Utilities – 11 full time
Hester said funds are included for a pay adjustment for county employees in July, with the potential of a performance pay adjustment in October. His salary recommendation will be finalized and presented during an upcoming budget meeting.
Fee Increases
Several public utility fee increases are included. Monthly residential retail water service base rates will increase just over 9 percent, from $21 to $23 per month. The cost per 1,000 gallons of water will increase from $4.40 to $4.65/month up to 4,000 gallons/month. 5,000-9,000/gallon monthly usage will increase from $5.40 to $5.70 per 1,000 gallons.
The base sewer rate charge will increase from $31 to $32 month. Wastewater treatment cost will also go up from $7.25 to $7.60 per 1,000 gallons. The new water and sewer rates will take effect Sept. 1, 2023.
The Department of Public Utilities provides retail water service to about 45,000 customers and retail sewer service to about 6,000 customers, plus bulk water and sewer service to municipalities and two private utilities.
The proposed budget recommends a $1 increase ($44 to $45 per ton) in the tipping fee and a $2 increase ($18 to $20 per ton) for yard waste at the Johnston County Landfill. These increases would be effective August 1, 2023.
“The annual budget process is very important as it sets the stage for the following fiscal year that begins on July 1. I look forward to working with the Board through this process,” County Manager Hester said Tuesday.
Budget meetings are tentatively scheduled for June 5th at 10:00am (public hearing), June 12 at 6:00pm, and June 19 at 6:00pm.
We teacher unions teachers don’t want to hear your fake hardship stories about multi-million dollar short fall. We know you have the money because of the property tax revaluation you county leaders had moved up to every four years instead of every eight years, you guys are getting bigger property tax checks coming in because of jacking the value’s of property four years earlier and telling everyone the tax rate stays the same. The tax payers of Johnston County may be so uneducated they don’t realize this but our teacher union teachers are educated and know you will be hauling in the extra millions and we want it for our teachers. Payup to the JCPS or the teacher union teachers will be on the county’s front steps!!!
NC doesn’t allow collective bargaining…what’s this “union” you speak of?
Gotta mention teacher unions even though most teachers here in NC don’t belong, and even though they can’t collectively bargain or go on strike. That might explain the empty classrooms and the reliance on foreign teachers.
Wow, what a joke! Give the school system crumbs right after discussing a $37 million surplus at the commissioners retreat a few months ago??? Mr. Hester protects his own while students and staff are stuck in mobile classrooms!!! This is why JCPS is one spot from the lowest funding per student!
It’s not 1995, time for a new county manager that understands growth!
Who ever you are “The future is now” is right and these commissioners can’t see all the millions of illegals children coming across the southern border for thier education, do they really think that a large number of these border crossings children are not showing up here in Johnston County? We have teacher’s spending out pocket money helping transgender children find support to transition. We have teacher’s spending out pocket money helping pregnant students find supportive reproductive care so they can get abortions. Our teachers arn’t just educators from the GOOD OLE DAYS, we are Social Justice Soldiers that are working for a progressive tomorrow!!!
If you get the national media down here to expose the corrupt stuff that is goin on and certain commissioner on the board and certain board of education members on the school board after being charged with chargers they have then I promise you they want be able to take the publicity that will be on them for what they have done and 2 seat will be open just like that. Joco it’s time to change !!! Has anyone really got off the couch and seen the mess that is goin on around you or do you just not care ?
Looks like education definitely failed you in some ways. Apostrophes indicate possession. For example “teacher’s” means “belongs to the teacher.” “Teachers” is plural, meaning more than one teacher. Your sentence, “We have teacher’s spending out pocket money helping transgender children find support to transition. We have teacher’s spending out pocket money helping pregnant students find supportive reproductive care so they can get abortions” is incorrect. I’m sorry that the system failed you so badly.
Lmao this is crazy!!!!!!!!!!!! What 3 dozen employees are getting pay raises. I would love to see that . But teachers and staff are stuck again. I would walk out and I would not come back until JoCo does something. This is bull Oh yea and thanks to all the schools that want money that are not public schools is another reason the PUBLIC schools are being screwed
Spend more & expand the government…. our board may as well call themselves Socialist Democrats — they’re definitely not conservatives! #VoteOutIncumbents
This is just the proposed budget. The county commissioners can give or take away all the money they want. Hopefully they will do the right thing and fully fund the school budget
Its a miracle. Someone realized throwing money at public ed is a not resulting in better schools. Now if parents and students had options…
There are over 13 pages of current openings on the jcps website, during the year they had no less than 9. There are 50 positions per page. Those are funded positions that were not filled through out the year. What happens to that money? What happened to the money in 2020 spring and fall school year allotted for fuel for buses that wasn’t used due to the pandemic? American leadership academy and Thales academy will be increasing their enrollment. There should be no need for an increase in funding. They will have less students and less teachers. Teachers are leaving in droves…even administrators are getting out because of the deplorable working conditions. No amount of money can change or compensate for the disrespect teachers get each day. My friend is retiring and has confirmed that jcps is only looking for a “certain type” of teacher ( I’ll let you decide what y type). Jcps is a poorly run system.
Let them have a Shortfall For JCPS. I am so sick of the government taking my money. I get a raise and the government takes twice that amount from me. They need, they need and that’s all I hear. I am so sick and tired of people crossing the border and I have to pay for it. Tell the JCPS to go to HE double toothpicks!
Until they can improve the schools no more money. It doesn’t take money to improve them it takes less administrators and county people, better paid teachers. Clear out the overhead at the county and give the money to the teachers.
in my opinion JCPS is top heavy…to many Chiefs (with ridiculous titles) and not enough Indians…(my opinion is like an *$@8ole, everybody has one)…..most of the pay raises go to the county office and NOT the teachers…if a principle retires????…they are given a POSITION at the county office making LOTS of money…..County Commissioners should NEVER give them the amount they whine about…what happened to all that money that certain School Board members diverted to other accounts to HIDE from the County Commissioners in their previous budget requests?????….if their budget actually went to the TEACHERS, and school improvements that needed the money I might feel differently…..
You are exactly right. As a JCPS teacher this has happened more and more over the last few years.
Well, JCPS does not need the additional money. Every time they have received extra funding over the last few years, our famous superintendent has been creating hefty paying positions for “Specialists” and “Coordinators” all across the county, and especially central office. They have the money to pay teachers better and fund the classroom for students, they choose not to. That is why there are so many people quitting JCPS this year, along with myself!
Boy that money is just disappearing left and right…them scatch offs must not be paying out too good.