WHEELING – The city of Wheeling finished the 2023-24 fiscal year with revenues exceeding expenditures by a significant amount.

In fact, the city is expected to carry over hundreds of thousands of dollars from the previous fiscal year that ended June 31 into the current fiscal year, which kicked off at the beginning of this month.

During their monthly meeting, members of the Finance Committee of Wheeling City Council received a June financial report from City Manager Robert Herron, as well as a year-end financial review for the 2023-24 fiscal year.

Herron said that in the city’s General Fund, revenues finished the year at $38,536,259, while expenditures finished the year at $38,111,791.

“So revenues exceed expenditures by $424,468 – just for a snapshot of the fiscal year,” Herron said.

Business and occupation tax revenues and sales tax revenues were up during the last fiscal year, the city manager noted.

“On the B&O Tax revenue for this particular fiscal year, it ended up being almost $700,000 ahead of last year, which as we’ve talked about, is a direct reflection of commerce that’s occurring in the city,” Herron explained. “So from a revenue perspective – there were ups and downs in various categories, sales tax for example was up as well – but the B&O tax, which is our largest single category of revenue, was up over last year by almost $700,000.”

In total, enough money will carry over into the 2024-25 fiscal year that it will have to be reallocated, Herron said.

“Because of the carry through, that did create a general fund cash carryover of unallocated funds of $657,701,” he noted. “Under West Virginia code, the $657,701 does need to be appropriated by city council. I do have recommendations for that.”

The current fiscal year budget for the city already has a projected cash carryover of $300,000. Officials indicated a cash carryover had been projected as part of the city’s budgeting process over the past several years. Cash carryovers have been used in the past to bolster the city’s Budget Stabilization Fund – or “rainy day” fund, which currently has a healthy $5,174,758.

Even with the budgeted $300,000 in cash carryover, it still leaves more than $357,000 in unencumbered cash that needs to be allocated.

“I’m recommending that city council consider appropriating $60,000 of that to the fire department for cancer screening procedures for firefighters over a certain age, as well as new hires, to kind of get a baseline based on what has occurred with firefighters and cancer over the past several years nationwide,” Herron suggested. “It’s for early detection. Firefighters are exposed to carcinogens that are cancer-causing agents. We have had some situations where we’ve had some firefighters who have had cancer. What we’re trying to do is get ahead of that with this particular set of tests.”

Herron said these tests include a body scan and blood work.

While the books are being closed on the city’s 2023-24 fiscal year, Herron suggested that the remainder of the cash carryover be placed in a contingency fund for the time being.

“The remaining part of that would be $297,000, which I would recommend going to contingencies,” he said. “We’re still closing out the fiscal year. There are still some adjustments we are making that I think will benefit the general fund this year. At least at this point, the financials do indicate the $657,000 carryover. Until we can get everything closed out, putting those funds into contingency certainly would reserve city council’s right to re-appropriate those funds at a later date.”