BY ANNE W. LAURENT
Los Alamos County Manager
Editor’s note: The FY2025-FY2026 Citizen’s Guide to the Budget in its entirety is available on the County website on the Finance and Budget page and the full FY2025-26 Proposed Biennial Budget is available on the Reports and Budgets page. Budget hearings begin April 22 and 23 and are open to the public.
The overall County proposed FY2025 expenditures are $371.7 million as compared to FY2024 adopted expenditures of $382.1 million. Overall County revenues are $410.9 million as compared to FY24 adopted revenues of $391.3 million.
GENERAL FUND
In FY2025, General Fund revenues are projected to be $124.8 million, or 8.3%, higher than in the FY2024 adopted budget for a total of $114.8 million. Projected GRT, Property Tax and Interdepartmental Charges make up the majority of the budgeted revenue.
At a total of $92.2 million, expenditures are $3.5 million, or 4%, higher than the FY24 adopted budget.
SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS
These funds account for expenditures restricted to specific purposes such as grants, Lodgers Tax, health care assistance, economic development and other special programs. In FY2025,
Special Revenue Funds projected to have $15.5 million in expenditures, which is $0.7 million more compared to FY2024 adopted budget.
The State Grants Fund proposed expenditures of $3.5 million which is about $126,000 higher than the FY2024 adopted budget.
The Health Care Assistance Fund expenditures are exceeding revenue due to the GRT revenue not covering the required payments to the State for the Medicaid and Safety Net Care Pool. As a result, expenditures for FY2025 are budgeted at $1.2 million above the FY2024 adopted budget. The transfer from the General Fund is proposed at $650,000, which is the same as the FY24 adopted budget to help address the shortfall, which must be covered by the fund balance.
The Economic Development Fund has budgeted revenues of $154,428 and budgeted expenditures of $4.6 million, which includes a placeholder of $2 million for the Middle Mile Project and a placeholder of $1.2 million for the LAPS and UNM-LA grants. The $400,000 in FY2025 for the Housing Rehabilitation and Down Payment Assistance programs continue to be funded by a transfer from the General Fund. This net decrease in fund balance/working capital
is due primarily to the Economic Development Fund having no recurring stream of revenue.
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS (CIP) FUNDS
For FY2025, expenditures in the CIP Fund total $77 million, which is $2.5 million higher than FY2024 due to the specific projects scheduled for FY25 vs. FY24 per the detailed CIP project schedules, which include broadband and ongoing maintenance and replacement needs.
The CIP proposed budget focuses on long-range projects that may require financing through the issuance of GRT revenue or other debt in order to be completed in FY2025 and forward.
JOINT UTILITY SYSTEMS FUND
The Joint Utility System Fund revenues for FY2025 are proposed at $104 million, which is $5.4 million (5%) below the FY2024 adopted budget. Expenditures are $99.4 million, which is $17.8 million (15.2%) lower than the prior year.
The FY2025 proposed Joint Utility Fund budgets include the effect of planned rate changes previously approved by the Board of Public Utilities (BPU) and the County Council for a 9% increase in electric rates, 2% increase in sewer rates, 6% increase in retail water rates 5.5%, and a 5% increase in wholesale potable an d non-potable water. The FY25 budget also includes a 5.5% increase in gas distribution rates. BPU and Council previously approved 3% increase for gas rates and DPU will return for approval of an additional 2.5% increase ahead of July 2024.
OTHER ENTERPRISE FUNDS
FY2025 revenues totaling $62.9 million in these business-type activity funds are projected to be $0.4 million, or 1% less than FY2024. Total expenses of $62.3 million for the FY25 proposed budget are $0.1 million less than FY24.
The Environmental Services Fund expenses are $10.4 million in the proposed FY2025 budget, which is $0.4 million over the FY2024 adopted budget. The proposed FY25 revenues of $10.2 million are $0.4 million higher than in FY24.
The Transit Fund expenditures are $7.5 million or $0.47 million above the FY2024 budget due primarily to the timing of bus replacement and related grants. The proposed revenues of $5.7 million are $0.7 million above the adopted FY24 budget. A General fund transfer in of $1.2 million supports grant matching requirements and supports the transit program.
The Fire Fund proposed expenditures are $43 million and proposed revenues are $46 million for FY2025. The $1.2 million (a 3.3% decrease) in expenditures is due primarily to the planned amounts within the Department of Energy Cooperative Agreement, and temporary reduction in allocated FTE, and is fully offset by associated increases in related revenue from both the General Fund and DOE.
The Airport Fund proposed revenue is $120,000 and expenditures are $848,817. The proposed budgeted revenues and expenditures are in line with the operations of the Airport.
INTERNAL SERVICE FUNDS
These funds account for goods and services provided by one County department to another.
Total FY2025 proposed expenditures in the Fleet Fund are $7.6 million or 13.2% higher than in FY2024. Proposed revenues are $0.78 million higher than the FY24 adopted budget. The increase in expenditures is due primarily to the escalation in prices and the unprecedented higher costs of supply chain, which impacted the replacement costs of our fleet.
The Risk Management Fund proposed FY2025 revenues and expenditures are $13.6 million and $12.9 million, respectively. The revenues increased by $0.79 million or 6.2% from the FY2024 adopted budget, while expenditures increased $0.65 million or 5.3%. The additional revenue is from an increase in intradepartmental charges, which correlate with the increases in premiums and claims.
CONCLUSION
The FY2025 proposed budget includes some significant changes. Work over the past two years has culminated in new projects and initiatives, such as the Community Broadband Network initiative, the Greenhouse Gas Inventory and associated Climate Action Plan, and the Comprehensive Health Plan. New assessments, such as Community Services’ Integrated Master
Plan, have provided important new data that is now being incorporated into the County’s capital and maintenance plans. Despite currently higher GRT revenues, the budget includes a proposed new GRT increment in FY2027. All these items, and the budget in general, are focused on the long-term success of the County. We aim to have the County’s long-term financial plans
and strategies support and enable achievement of the County’s overall strategic goals.
I am pleased to present the FY2025 proposed budget and look forward to the Council’s and community’s consideration of it. Los Alamos County strives to provide excellent service to our citizens. Our progress would not be possible without the dedication, commitment to excellent customer service, and professionalism of County employees. They are the backbone that makes this an organization of excellence. Thank you, Los Alamos County employees, for your loyalty and service!
I also want to thank our County Council for their commitment, leadership, and guidance, especially over the past year with their continued recruitment and retention support. As the newly appointed County Manager, I am looking forward to working together as a team and a community. Our collective efforts will move the County forward in a positive direction.