Budget Error Erases Surplus, Creates $920,000 Deficit for Montgomery County

Montgomery County Board Meeting | October 14, 2025

Article Summary: A clerical error discovered in the tentative budget has transformed a projected surplus into a near-million-dollar deficit. The County Board has scheduled an emergency finance meeting to address the shortfall before final budget approval.

Montgomery County Budget Key Points:

• The Error: A tally sheet used during budget preparation failed to include $1,071,650 in General Administrative expenses.

• The Impact: A projected General Fund surplus of $96,000 is now a deficit of $920,000.

• Next Steps: A special Finance & Budget Committee meeting is scheduled for October 23, 2025, to address the shortfall.

The Montgomery County Board on Tuesday, October 14, 2025, faced a significant financial setback after Treasurer Nikki Lohman discovered a major calculation error in the tentative fiscal year 2026 budget.

Finance & Budget Committee Chairman Andy Ritchie reported to the board that Lohman had identified the discrepancy earlier that day. According to Ritchie, a tally sheet on the front of the tentative budget, prepared by Bellwether, failed to include $1,071,650 in budgeted General Administrative expenses.

The correction of this error drastically altered the county’s financial outlook for the coming year. What was previously thought to be a $96,000 surplus in the General Fund has been reclassified as a $920,000 deficit.

To address the newly discovered shortfall, Ritchie announced that a special Finance & Budget Committee meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, October 23, 2025, at 8:30 a.m. in the County Board Room of the Historic Courthouse.

The full board is expected to take final action on the budget at their November meeting.

In other financial business, the board approved the FY2026 aggregate tax levies. Ritchie noted that Truth in Taxation hearings held on September 24 for the Raymond-Harvel Area Ambulance Service and the Veterans Assistance Commission received no opposition. The approved levies included a Montgomery County Tax Levy of $5,081,785, representing a 4.999% increase from FY2025.