Kane County finance director: general fund cash balance $26M, reserves $6.5M short

Miss Hopkinson, the county finance director, told the Kane County Finance & Budget Committee the general fund general account cash balance “as of the preparation of this report is 26,000,000.” She said that, under the county's 90‑day reserve policy, the target for 2026 is $32,500,000, leaving the county about $6,500,000 short of the policy level.

Hopkinson said the 2026 budget assumes using $6,000,000 of fund balance to pay expenses and that, while the 2027 proposed budget does not use reserves in the general fund, other funds such as the IMRF (pension) and the county payroll‑tax/FICA fund are trending downward. “Our IMRF fund is also trending downward over time,” she said, and county staff warned it may be necessary to reallocate property‑tax revenue among funds in future budgets.

Committee members asked whether the current shortfall was a timing issue tied to property‑tax receipts or a structural gap. Hopkinson said the county uses two indicators — fund‑balance usage and cash‑flow — and that shortfalls can be handled temporarily by board‑authorized short‑term loans but that structural fixes (levy or allocation changes) may be needed for 2028. The committee asked staff to add a “red‑line” on IMRF and FICA graphs and to bring policy options for reserve targets in a future committee or full board session.