Swain commissioners talk county budget

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Swain commissioners talk county budget

Commissioners balked at raising property taxes to fund increased county expenditures. File photo

Even ahead of calculating the budget, Swain County’s Fiscal Year 2026-2027 costs are likely to be higher, said County Manager Lottie Barker.

“It’s across the board, different depending on what the department has asked for, as well as special appropriations.

So, of course, the library has asked for more due to the expectation of Jackson leaving the Fontana Regional [Library system],” she said at the May 5 meeting of county commissioners.

Swain County will incur an additional $15,000 to $150,000 with Jackson’s withdrawal from the FRL system.

To make matters worse, inflation rates have reached 3.3% as of April 30, despite stagnant wages.

“I’m afraid we’re going to have to raise taxes,” said commissioner David Loftis, who criticized such a decision. The people’s money, he said, is not a free-for-all in the hands of commissioners.

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Chair Jay Kirkland said even if an increase were to happen, the county’s problems would remain unresolved.

“You’ve got a $26 million budget. Taxes — property taxes — bring in about $7 million. That’s not enough, and that’s the reason I keep saying you’re gonna have to tap into the tourist dollar. Raising taxes ain’t gonna get you where you gotta go. Not for us,” he said.

Swain County does face unique circumstances. Property taxes, equal to about 32% of revenue, comprised less of its budget compared to all but one North Carolina county. However, as municipalities and counties await a state budget while taking on costs of care typically covered by the federal government, they’re forced to turn to their two primary sources of revenue: sales and property tax.

Swain County received $4.4 million of sales tax revenue for fiscal year 2025-2026. Property tax revenue is more lucrative by comparison, totaling $7.8 million. And unfortunately, it’s not possible to take money specifically out of the tourists’ pockets. Any tourism-related revenue, such as occupancy tax, goes back to the Tourism Development Authority to fund its operations.

As the North Carolina General Assembly looks to cap property taxes, some counties have already passed resolutions that assert commissioners’ opposition. But Swain, which enjoys one of the lowest property tax rates in the state along with a meager tax base, has been historically opposed to raising rates.

Its five-cent property tax increase — which passed through a 3-2 majority with Loftis among the two opposed — was the first of its kind in over a decade.

But the one department put at perhaps the greatest disadvantage by this confluence of variables — cuts from state and federal sources and an unequal funding formula dependent on property tax supplementation — is public education. The recent Leandro ruling, wherein the majority Republican opinion slashed a lower court order mandating the state to spend millions more on public education, particularly in low-wealth districts, has denied the school system funding that would exceed one-third of its budget.

County commissioners have held a May 12 work session and will convene for another on May 26 to finalize the county budget.

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