Horry County Administration Committee Meeting - October 21, 2024
Horry County Administration Committee Meeting - October 21, 2024
The Horry County Administration Committee met on October 21, 2024, at 1:00 PM in the County Council Conference Room. The meeting covered financial updates, an election update, a discussion on food trucks on county property, a reassessment appeals update, and several action items including compensation for county boards, ARPA fund reallocations, grant matching funds, a fee agreement amendment with DC Blox Inc., transfer of Conway's municipal elections to the county election commission, and a tax exemption extension.
Public Comments & Testimony
- No members of the public signed up to speak.
Discussion Items
- Financial Update – September 2024 (Shannon Todd): Total revenues across all funds were nearly $33.8 million, with 67.25% from the general fund. General fund revenues were $22.7 million (8.4% of budget) and expenditures $59 million (22.5% of budget). Property tax revenues are expected in December-January. Special revenue funds (fire, road maintenance, beach renourishment, stormwater, recreation, waste management) are performing as expected. The committee also recognized the finance team for receiving the GFOA Excellence in Financial Reporting awards for budget, annual report, and popular annual report.
- General Election Update (Sandy Martin): Over 11,000 absentee ballots have been issued, 8,600 ballots mailed, and 5,300 returned. Early voting began that day with all seven sites busy. The office has 7 full-time staff and 2 temporary full-time shared with IT. Sandy Martin was recognized for 40 years of service with the county.
- Discussion of Food Trucks on County Property (David Jordan): The county has received inquiries from four food truck vendors (hot dog, donut, hamburger, Philly cheesesteak). Currently, commercial activity requires a franchise agreement. Staff will bring a recommendation to the next council meeting to create a regulatory framework, potentially limiting the number of trucks and designating specific areas.
- Reassessment Appeals Update (Larry Roscoe): 5,565 total appeals were received (about 4,500 residential, 631 commercial, 300-400 HOAs). 66% have been responded to, and 41% are closed (agreement reached). On average, market values have been reduced 9% for residential and 13% for commercial, but taxable values only changed by 3.48% residential and 1.39% commercial due to tax caps. Total taxable value change is about 3%.
Key Outcomes
- Ordinance to Authorize Compensation for Members of Certain Horry County Boards (Amended): The committee approved an amendment setting compensation at $100 per meeting for members and $150 for chairpersons (previously $75/$100). Mileage reimbursement is also included. The motion passed with a vote of 3-1 (Mr. Gardner dissenting). The ordinance will go to full council.
- Resolution to Designate Projects Under ARPA and Transfer Funds (Barry Spivey): Unanimously approved. The resolution (1) transfers $2,000,000 from the Atlantic Avenue/Waccamaw Drive Streetscape/Resiliency project to acquire a commercial lot for parking, (2) transfers $350,000 from the ARPA Beach Bathrooms appropriation to Garden City Beach Parking, and (3) authorizes up to $5,000,000 in ARPA funds to be swapped with general fund public safety personnel expenditures to meet ARPA obligation deadlines.
- Resolution Authorizing Transfer of Funds from Grants Match to East Coast Greenway – Business 17 Project (Beth Tranter): Unanimously approved. Transfer of $232,800 from grants match to fund the 20% local match for a $1,164,000 SCDOT grant for a multi-use path along Business 17 from Atlantic Avenue to the county line.
- Ordinance for First Amendment to Fee Agreement with DC Blox Inc. (Barry Spivey): Unanimously approved. Extends the investment period and adds approximately 20 acres to the fee-in-lieu-of-tax agreement for the existing data center project.
- Ordinance Accepting Transfer of Authority for City of Conway’s Municipal Elections (David Jordan): Unanimously approved. The county election commission will conduct Conway's municipal elections starting immediately, with the city reimbursing costs. Conway retains candidate filing.
- Resolution Authorizing Chairman to Execute SCDOR Form PT-444 for 5-Year Exemption Extension from PSI Molded Plastics to S3 Realty (David Jordan): Unanimously approved. Transfers an existing state tax credit (approx. $7,000/year reimbursed by SCDOR) to the new property owner with no cost to the county.
- Community Benefit Fund Requests: Two allocations were approved unanimously: $1,000 to Surfside Area Rotary (District 6) for Happy Feet, Backpack Buddies, and holiday meals; and $1,500 to Longs Volunteers (District 9) for supplies for elderly, sick, and children.
Meeting Transcript
Meeting to order. We'll start today with invocation by Mr. Allen, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. Everybody please rise. Praise God. Let us pray. Heavenly Father, we're thankful to have this opportunity once again to be able to gather here and come together. Encourage our hearts and uplift us. Direct us and guide us according to your perfect will. Touch each and every heart and soul in a very special way so that all things will be done for your glory, so that we might be able to praise you and honor you through it all. Because we ask you to fund thy holy name, our Lord and our Savior, Christ Jesus. Amen. And to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God, indivisible, liberty, and justice for all. Moving on to public input. There's nobody signed up to today. So we'll move on to the review and approval of the agenda contents. Motion to approve. So all in favor? All right. The ayes have it. Moving on to the approval of the minutes from the September 24th, 2024 meeting. Motion to approve. Second. All in favor? Ayes have it. Moving on to new business financial update September 2024. Ms. Todd. All right. So looking at financials for September. We're going to start off with all revenues across all funds. So we're just under 33.8 million with 67.25% of that being from general fund. Expenditures across all funds is at 75.5 million. And 78.5% of that being from general fund. Looking at general fund. At this point of the year, we do an annualized budget, so we estimate it be around 25% through the fiscal year. Looking at revenues for general fund to date, we're at 22.7 million, which is around 8.4% of the budget amount. Majority of the revenues will come in that December-January time frame. Our expenditures are at $59 million, which is 22 and a half percent of the budget amount, just slightly under where expected to be at this point in the fiscal year. We have transfers of 1.3 million with both revenues and expenditures being up in comparison to prior year actuals. Looking at the general fund revenues more closely, we are where we expected to be in most categories, with both vehicle taxes and interest being above expectations at this point. And again, the property tax revenue will come in that December January time frame. Expenditures for general fund. Where we're expected to be in most categories outside of contractual services, that is up due to larger contracts renewing at the beginning of the fiscal year. That'll balance out in the coming months. Where we're expected to be, we see a net change in fund balance of 5.6 million. Again, those revenues will come in that December January time frame. Road maintenance fund has a net change in fund balance of 4 million, with both revenues and expenditures performing as expected. And beach for nourishment fund has a slight net change in fund balance of $335,000 with very little expenditures thus far into the new fiscal year. Stormwater fund has a net change in fund balance of $2.5 million.
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