Georgetown County's Fiscal Year 2022 budget was approved by Georgetown County Council on June 22 and is available for public review. The full budget document is available on the Finance section of the county website.
The balanced budget totals $90.6 million and represents a 3.2% increase over the adopted budget for the previous fiscal year. "Several distinct goals and initiatives were included in the budget for Georgetown County, and many challenges were faced," said County Administrator Angela Christian. "However, it is our belief that we have addressed the major issues within the budget."
The 2021-22 budget document does not include provision for the use of the $12 million dollars Georgetown County will be receiving from the America Rescue Plan Act of 2021. To date, the county has received a little over $6 million of the funds anticipated and expects to receive the remaining funds sometime next spring. Staff is working diligently to prepare a proposal on how to allocate the funding following the guidelines provided by the U.S. Department of Treasury. While the 2021-22 budget did not include cost of living raises for employees, it is the county's intention to compensate employees who worked during the pandemic with a one-time stipend in August. The county will also reimburse itself for any allowable expenses. Once these initiatives have been implemented staff will examine allowable Capital and Operational expenditures. It is the county's goal to have a completed outline of uses for the America Rescue Plan Act of 2021 funding by this coming fall.
In addition to the full budget document, staff has also prepared an executive summary of the FY 2022 budget for public review.