By SARIT LASCHINSKY

Special to The Press

The virtual Lehigh County Citizens Academy continued March 25 with a presentation of all things financial, courtesy of county chief financial officer Timothy Reeves.

He provided information on the county’s fiscal office, its roles and responsibilities, the budgeting process, and some of the specific items where tax dollars are spent.

Reeves began his presentation by highlighting the total fund structure within Lehigh County, though he noted the evening’s webinar would focus on the General Fund, particularly its operating and stabilization funds.

“The thing I kind of like to remind people about those two funds is the operating is kind of like our checking account, and stabilization fund is kind of like our saving account,” Reeves said. “The sum of the money that runs through those two funds is kind of what pays for the day-to-day operations here of the county.”

Next, Reeves went over a summary of the numerous departments and groups whose fiscal activities run through the operating fund, beginning with elected officials.

Reeves noted this grouping includes the county commissioners, district attorney, coroner, narcotics information, judicial records, sheriff and county controller, among others, and he said each elected official has their own specific accountant.

The next grouping is the county executive’s budget which includes the county executive himself, the voter’s registration and the public defender’s office.

Next came the administration department which is comprised of, among other things, the director of administration, General County, the fiscal office, bureau of collections, bureau of tax claims and the assessment office, and Reeves took some time to provide a closer look.

“Those areas fall under my direct responsibility,” Reeves said, “the fiscal office is responsible for all of the financial recording, financial statements, budgeting, retirement and retirement payments, processing of payroll and also do general accounting-type functions.”

The bureau of collections, which Reeves noted was located in the courthouse, is responsible for the collection of fines and restitutions set by courts.

He said the bureau meet with clients on a daily basis to collect fees, works to set up payment plans and various functions related to collections, and also collaborates with probation officers and the district attorney’s office to ensure a streamlined flow of funds.

Regarding the bureau of tax claims, Reeves said the county has outsourced its delinquent tax collections to Elite Revenue Solutions, nothing while the county handles initial collections on taxes, they are turned over upon becoming delinquent.

Furthermore, the assessment office is responsible for all county assessments of residential and commercial property values, which Reeves said are applied to the county’s tax rate and provided to school districts and municipalities for their respective tax collections.

Other departments which Reeves listed as factoring into the operating budget include Human Services, General Services, Corrections, the Department of Law, Courts, and Community and Economic Development.

Next, Reeves gave audience members an idea of a general overview of the overall funds associated with the county’s stabilization fund balance, which is projected to be approximately $25 million by Dec. 31.

Reeves said the fund was created several years ago, “and it was determined that $25 million seemed to be the sufficient dollar amount to utilize, or to have.”

“I know that from time to time, people have heard or referred to that as a ‘rainy day fund,’ and I constantly remind people that this is not an accurate description, it really is a stabilization fund,” he added.

Reeves explained that in Lehigh County all tax dollars are typically collected from May-August while spending occurs throughout the entire year.

“So, what this stabilization fund actually allows us to do is in January, February and March, when the fund balances are bound to a bare minimum, we’re able to use the fund to stabilize our finances and get us through until those next tax bills go out and the tax revenue starts to flow afterward.”

Additionally, Reeves also provided an overview of the county’s 2021 adopted budget, its revenues and expenditures.

Under expenditures, he made note of approximately $113.5 million which the county is expected to collect, in addition to $6.45 million in grants and reimbursements received as “pass-throughs.”

Other revenue sources include $13.7 million in departmental earnings, $4.2 million in judicial costs and fines, and various other funds received in investment income, rents, payments in lieu of taxes and other streams, bringing the total expected revenue to $139,391,416.

For expenditures, the largest sources are corrections with $33.2 million, courts with $30.1 million, election officials with $25.4 million and administration areas with $24.5 million.

Other expenditures also include $2.98 million for the county executive’s department, $8.44 million for General Services and $1.37 million for the department of law, with total expenditures amounting to $130,109,285.

Reeves said after the totals for debt service and transfers are factored in, in the amount of $13,950,836, the county is faced with an anticipated shortfall of $4,668,705 for the year, which will be made up with the use of fund balance.

“For the most part, we’ve been able to beat those projections in the past,” he said, noting that historically, the main reasons for this deal with county payroll and budgeting decisions related to union contracts and benefits.

“We hope that trend continues, but we have to budget conservatively and expect things based on historical data.”

Reeves also provided a look at where the county’s $113 million in tax dollars are being spent with the majority of funds - approximately $78 million - going to the “Law and Order” category which includes corrections, courts, the district attorney’s office, sheriff and others.

The largest items within this category are collections and courts, which receive approximately $27.7 million a piece, followed by the district attorney’s $7.9 million.

Various elected officials like the controller, commissioners and county executive draw $1.5 million in tax revenue, while the debt service accounts for nearly $14 million.

Reeves said Lehigh County has been averaging in the $12 million to $14 million range in its annual debt service, but he said 2023 will see a “significant drop” to approximately half the current amount as the county will have paid back a significant part of the debt associated with the jail and courthouse.

The “Quality of Life” category accounts for nearly $6.1 million in tax dollars, with its largest constituent pieces being $1.5 million for voter’s registration, $1.4 for parks and trails, $1.2 million for LANTA/Joint Planning, and various other expenditures for Coca-Cola Park, Community and Economic Development, Veterans Affairs and other areas.

Additionally, Reeves noted that $5.3 million in tax revenues goes to Human Services, $1.08 million to capital projects, $2.58 to nursing homes and $9.4 million to all other functions.

Archived broadcasts of the 2021 Citizens Academy’s free webinars are available for viewing on the Lehigh County YouTube channel.