Halifax County Manager Dia Denton, in presenting a balanced $60,552,080 budget for the upcoming fiscal year Monday night, also delivered to commissioners her budget message.

“With your insight, direction and support, this document represents a continuation of county services provided in the most cost-effective manner possible,” she said.

The board accepted the county’s manager’s budget message and awaits a June 2 public hearing on the financial plan.

Board comments

“I’ll just say thank you to all the staff, Ms. Denton and her team for working hard and diligent as always,” Commissioner Chenoa Davis said. “I had an opportunity to brag on all of you when I first came on the board that we were already doing our budget when I went to training. Thank you for keeping us on that time commitment and having this done early.”

Chair Vernon Bryant said while staff needs to be commended, “This board needs to be commended for a job well done as far as your leadership. You have to have the right board of commissioners, the right county management, the right board of education, and the right superintendent.”

Commissioner Jimmie Silver commended the staff and board for including funds for a new county parks and recreation department in the proposed budget. “We’ve managed to make that happen by staying true … I just want to thank everybody, especially my area and you guys for making it a reality. I think it’s the same thing for Scotland Neck. It’s like we’ve been forgotten for so long. This year you showed us that we matter.”  

Early preparation

Each year, staff begins its budget process much earlier than most other local governments and has been working on the financial plan since last September — analyzing operational, capital and educational needs. “This process included detailed capital planning, as well as input from the board of county commissioners during its retreat in December 2024, which culminated with the commissioners' direction during our lone April 2025 budget work session.”

She said, “I would like to extend a special thanks to the management team, elected officials, department/agency directors, and our educational partners for their continued dedication to a conservative and fiscally responsible approach in this budget process. 

“As always, this budget strives to meet the board of commissioners' mission to provide leadership and support for an effective county government that seeks to enhance the quality of life for all the people of Halifax County."

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Fund balance

In December the county's annual audit was presented, and Halifax County remains financially healthy, she said, with a 62.37 percent fund balance of $51,373,924, which is well above the minimum suggested by the North Carolina Local Government Commission. 

A substantial amount of the fund balance is not available for general use, meaning available cash-on-hand is $29,398,544 to address any additional non-recurring needs in this budget. “Again, I compliment staff, with direction from the Halifax County Board of Commissioners, for creating the environment to allow us to have this healthy unassigned fund balance, which also helps us be prepared for emergencies and disasters,” she said. “Unlike the federal government, we are required to balance our budget and maintain additional funds to cover any major unexpected events.”

The county continues to use what she described as the same successful revenue-based budgeting process, “which has served us well for more than 20 years. This process has allowed us to proactively manage our budget, to be able to withstand economic challenges, and to be prepared for any future challenges.”

This approach has allowed the county to maintain a healthy overall general fund balance. “Halifax County has always had challenges in being able to provide services to our citizens while keeping the property tax rate low. Compared to other rural North Carolina counties, we continue to have one of the lowest property tax rates.”

Despite the county’s Tier 1 designation, it maintains a strong budget. “I pay tribute to our talented team in making this success happen. In addition to the tax department, I commend County Attorney Glynn Rollins and his staff, as well as the sheriff’s office, in going above and beyond to work with taxpayers in establishing payment plans to aid citizens and minimize hardships. We are not required to establish payment plans, but we do so in order to support our citizens while respecting financial challenges they face.”

Finance department

The backbone of the budget lies in the finance department, Denton said. “Our finance department has been the recipient of the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report award for the past 25 years in a row, which continues to show the professional and exceptional level of service we strive to provide to our citizens for a reasonable property tax rate. Our citizens are fortunate to have such dedicated county staff whose commitment is proven on a daily basis.”

Positive economic development movement

The county continues to have positive movement in its economic development efforts. “I applaud the board of commissioners' forward-thinking and proactive approach in continuing to position the county to create more jobs that pay a living wage in the future.”

The construction of the new Fairfield by Marriott Hotel off Interstate 95 at Exit 173 is nearly complete and has already spurred additional development in this area including another new hotel and large chain restaurant. “Due to the strong support from our Economic Development Commission and Executive Director Cathy Scott, as well as the county commissioners' enterprising approach, we are poised to experience additional growth in our local economy.”

Fund balance allocation

Based on what she described as the county’s sound annual budget process, its financial situation is stable and abides by the standards set by the LGC. “I am proud that we have had stable budgets in place for the last 20 years. This budget allocates $3,931,831 from our fund balance for the next fiscal year's approved capital expenditures for county departments.”  

An additional $590,000 of fund balance will cover the costs of one-time bonuses to full-time and eligible part­-time employees. 

The commissioners approved awarding full-time employees $1,000 bonuses and eligible part-time employees $500 bonuses, payable in July. 

Schools

As required by the state of North Carolina, all counties with multiple graded school districts are required to support each district equally as to local current expense funding based on each district's average daily membership. 

Counties must also provide funding for school capital needs. 

This year's budget provides additional capital funding for public schools and the community college totaling $882,500.

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This additional funding resulted from sales tax revenues collected and distributed to the county. The current allocation is the result of collections over the past year. 

Each fiscal year, the Halifax County Board of Commissioners determines how to appropriate these funds, which are limited to economic development, public education or community college purposes. Historically, the funds have been directed toward education.

All graded school systems will receive funding based on the supplemental school property tax rate within their respective districts. 

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Because the county distributes local sales and use taxes by the ad valorem method, all three districts will be receiving a portion of sales tax revenues.

Long-term debt

The county's long-term debt will shrink considerably during FY 25-26. 

This budget funds the final debt service payments for the social services building, Inborden Elementary and Enfield Middle S.T.E.A.M Academies, and for Qualified School Construction Bonds for projects at the Roanoke Rapids Graded School District and Weldon City Schools. However, the county will add a major project to the debt schedule in the coming years, as the new detention facility project moves toward construction. 

Commissioners have provided staff with a $50 million dollar budget to construct a new facility that will hold over 200 inmates. “This much-needed facility will allow Halifax County to house all of our inmates without having to transfer them to other facilities due to lack of space.”

Budget features

This budget continues county services at efficient and effective levels.

This budget is based on an estimated property tax base of $4,664,723,032 and a tax collection rate of 98 percent. 

The tax rate of $0.70 cents per $100 value will be adequate to support the FY 2025-2026 budget.

This budget absorbs a 15 percent increase in property and liability insurance coverage.

The county provides local funding to each graded school district based on ADM allotments that are provided by North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and the amount allocated will increase from $799.37 per pupil to $824.67 per pupil.

To maintain a healthy workforce, this budget continues to provide a competitive benefits package, which includes 100 percent paid premiums for health coverage for each full-time employee who participates in the county's wellness program.

This budget provides a 1.75 percent cost of living adjustment for all full-time employees, plus a

step increase of 1.25 percent for each employee, for a 3 percent total increase for all staff.

This budget maintains the longevity pay program, which is a vital employee retention tool to reward long-term full-time employees.

This budget provides a one-grade increase for all detention center positions. Each grade within the salary grade and step table equates to 5 percent. The total salary increase for all positions in the detention center is 8 percent including the 3 percent cost of living adjustment.

This budget funds the pay-for-performance evaluation plan, a vital employee retention tool.

This budget includes funds to support both economic development and contingency operations.

This budget continues to require employees to use county vehicles, when available, for

travel; this policy amounts to a savings of over 60 percent in travel costs versus paying mileage for use of personal vehicles.

This budget funds needed capital outlay for county departments.

This budget provides funding to the Community Grants program in the amount of $50,000.

This budget provides funding to create a county parks and recreation department.

Halifax County adopted a parks and recreation master plan in 2014. It was a 10-year plan to develop recreational facilities and programming throughout Halifax County. 

Many of the recommendations of this plan have been implemented, with the exception of forming a formal parks and recreation department. 

This budget, with the support of the Halifax County commissioners, creates two positions and establishes a first-year operational budget to begin expanding parks and recreational opportunities and developing additional assets in the county. 

The department will begin with a director and an administrative position.

County commitment

“This proposed budget shows the county's commitment to providing excellent services to its citizens,” Denton said. “However, it only addresses items over which we, the county, have full control. There will always be the potential for changes from both the federal and state government, as they react to national and worldwide events.

“Staff and I will continue to work diligently with the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners and the National Association of Counties in communicating our concerns to both our state and federal legislators to ensure they are fully educated and aware of the potential implications of their decisions at the local level in Halifax County.”

She said, “I am proud of the positive working relationships we have with these agencies, as well as with our federal and state legislative officials.”

The next steps

As required by law, the budget will be available for public inspection in the clerk to the board's office and in all five county public libraries for the required 10 days. 

A public hearing will be held on Monday, June 2 at 9:30 a.m. with a final adoption scheduled for Monday, June 16 at 5:30 p.m. 

The budget will also be available on the county's website. 

Said Denton: “I am grateful for the opportunity you have given me to continue serving this great county. I appreciate your support, guidance and encouragement, as staff and I continue to provide services to our citizens. I am grateful for the management team members who amaze me with their diligence and attention to detail.”

She acknowledged the support she has received from the county’s core budget team — Deputy County Manager Christina Wells, Assistant County Manager Thomas Everett, Finance Director Mary Duncan, and Assistant Finance Director Teresa Mozingo. — “These team members are key pieces of the massive budget puzzle.”

Said Denton: “Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our employees for their hard work and dedication. Knowing our challenges, our employees are mindful of budget constraints and continue to look for ways to improve service delivery; this strong sense of loyalty is proven daily in my interactions with staff. It will always be my desire to provide strong, stable leadership and to take a fiscally conservative approach to improving the quality of life for our citizens. 

“Our goals in Halifax County are to provide a better place to live, work, play and to improve life for all of our residents. Our informal motto has been Working Together Works, and I am honored to be part of a team that practices and lives out the meaning of these words every day.”