At its June 18 meeting, the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners voted to approve an FY25 General Fund budget of $440,025,235. An increase of 0.7% from the previous year, the budget reflects a tax rate of 51.76 cents (1.96 cents more than FY24). The budget reflects $1.2 million in revenue changes and $1.8 million in expenditure reductions since the June 4 budget presentation. This net change of $3.15 million allows for a .59 cent reduction in the FY25 recommended tax rate.
For a home valued at $400,000, the median property value in Buncombe, that represents an increase of $78.40 annually on the base Buncombe County property tax. With 1.21 cents of the increase going to County operations and .75 cents going to K-12 education, the FY25 budget continues prior year education contributions.
Commissioners also approved FY25 tax rate increases for the Fairview and North Buncombe Fire Districts. The new rate for Fairview will be 16 cents per $100 of valuation and 12.27 cents for North Buncombe.
The FY25 General Fund budget includes 30 new positions in the general fund for human services, public safety, general government, and economic & physical development. Three Solid Waste positions are also included through the enterprise fund. The FY25 budget incorporates a FY25 cost of living adjustment of 4.89% for employees.
To view the full FY25 budget and the Buncombe County Budget Explorer, go to www.buncombecounty.org/budget.