Finance presentation previews 2027 budget, software upgrades and staffing strain

Walworth County finance staff presented the finance department portion of the proposed 2027 budget, saying there are no new capital projects but that several multi-year software and staffing efforts are underway. The presenter explained the county intends to upgrade its general ledger and reporting/budgeting software and to finish a vendor verification rollout expected to begin in October.

"We don't have any new capital projects for 2027, but, we will continue to be working through the current projects that we do have for the next year," said the finance presenter, who outlined plans to contract for reporting software and to implement templates for financial statements by the end of the year. The presentation also noted a $55,000 net technology increase for part-year software costs and potential additional costs next year tied to implementation.

Staff flagged operational impacts from staffing churn: the department reported seven new hires, three promotions and one transfer over the last year and said much of the team has one year or less of experience, which slows workflows because governmental accounting demands specialized training. Finance said a short-term, 10-hours-per-week purchasing clerical position is being requested in the 2027 budget to handle routing and open-records tasks until software efficiencies take effect.

Committee members asked about timing and procurement. Staff said the project will include separate awards for the reporting software and for implementation/consulting so the county can begin configuration and template work promptly. The committee did not vote on the budget itself at this presentation but later recommended the preliminary budget for public posting.