GENESEE COUNTY, MI — The county’s newest audit report shows an old, lingering trouble — swiftly increasing wellness advantage charges for retirees and really small in the bank to spend the bill.

The audit by Plante &amp Moran shows the county’s total liability for the retiree wellness positive aspects was additional than $405 million as of Sept. 30 with just $9.four million in the bank to make payments that are anticipated to be a important public expense for the subsequent 30 years-plus.

The new numbers are the newest proof of a lengthy-term drag on finances in the county, which in current years has paid roughly a single of just about every 3 dollars from its price range on fringe positive aspects for present and retired workers.

Plante &amp Moran presented its audit to the county Board of Commissioners on Wednesday, March 15. Commissioners had been anticipated to meet in a workshop on Saturday, March 18, to go over county finances in higher detail.

Right here are six highlights from the report:

• Retiree wellness care is projected to price additional than $16 million in the present fiscal year but the expense is projected to get worse prior to it gets far better. Annual payments for the positive aspects are anticipated to top rated $20 million in the 2028 fiscal year, reaching $25 million by fiscal year 2038, and to continue above $25 million annually for one more six years. A reduce in the annual payments is not anticipated till 2044 and the spending is not projected to drop back to present levels till 2052.
• The county pension technique, which new workers are no longer enrolled in, is in a far better economic position than the retiree wellness care technique. As of the finish of 2021, the county had pension savings of additional than $254 million and liabilities of additional than $363 million, creating the system funded at almost 70%. The funded ratio of the pension system has enhanced from 61 % in 2018 to 69.eight% on Dec. 31, 2021.
• The county’s all round fund balance — also identified as its rainy-day fund — enhanced from $39.five million to $42.1 million in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2022. At the finish of the present fiscal year, the unassigned fund balance for the common fund was $15.three million or 15.eight% of total common fund expenditures.
• As of the close of the present fiscal year, the county’s governmental funds reported combined ending fund balances of $97.five million, an improve of $eight.9 million compared with the prior year. A important portion of the improve can be traced to the improve in home tax income and charges for solutions.
• The county employed $three million in American Rescue Strategy Act funds in its most current price range, assisting it to add $two.six million in fund balance in the most current fiscal year. Spending enhanced from $106 million to $131 million, an improve of about 24%, mostly since of enhanced grant funding and transfers for capital projects.
• Simply because of increasing charges, $25 million of the county’s fund balance is anticipated to be employed in future years, according to the report. Amongst the suggestions in the document are that the county execute lengthy-term forecasting for all funds, formal money-flow projections, and adopt a fund balance policy.

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