1️⃣ FIRST, A DEFINITION

I think we can all agree that a surplus refers to taxes collected above/more than what City Council budgeted... OR.. whatever incoming local taxes levied that weren't planned or expected in the fiscal year.

For purposes of public clarity, I define ‘surplus’ strictly as the amount of tax revenue collected ABOVE what City Council budgeted — not unspent department balances or long-standing reserve funds.

So...
 

2️⃣ WHAT IS LYNCHBURG'S ACTUAL SURPLUS?

$1,301,755 (not $47 million).

That is a difference of 3543% from what you've been told....

 

$1,301,755 represents tax dollars collected above the adopted FY25 budget (meaning, what Council expected to tax you), based on the line items highlighted in the attached document.

3️⃣ HOW THE NUMBERS BREAK DOWN (see highlighted areas in the attachment):

 

🔴 Red Box — Actual taxes collected above budget
 

These categories represent tax revenues directly levied on Lynchburg residents:

• Current Real Property

• Current Personal Property – Local Portion

• General Property Taxes

• Other Local Taxes (example, sales tax)

Total Surplus: $1,301,755

This is the strictest and most conservative definition of “surplus.”
 

🟣 Purple Box — Permits, Fees, and Regulatory Licenses
 

These are not property or local taxes, but some may consider them tax-adjacent revenue.
 

• If included, this adds $139,042, bringing the total to $1,440,797.
   

Including or excluding this category does not materially change the overall takeaway.
 

Other Categories (for clarity)
 

These are not direct taxes levied on residents. Examples include:

• Taxes from Use of Money and Property (investment interest)

• Charges for Services (Parks & Recreation, program fees, etc.)

• Fines and forfeitures

• Transfers and reimbursements
   

These items reflect operational activity, not surplus taxation.
 

4️⃣ WHY THE SURPLUS ISN'T $47 MILLION?

The $47 million figure refers to the entire fund balance, these dollars were already taxed and appropriated for a purpose, which includes:
 

• The City’s mandatory 10% financial reserve (approx. $24 million)

• Budgeted use of one-time capital projects (approx. $13 million)

• Planned use/coverage of Monthly Trash & Car Registration Fee (approx. $3 million)

• State Departments funded by the City such as Human Services or City Schools (approx. $4.5 million)

• Investment Interest & Charges for Services like Parks programming (approx. $1.3 million)

• Accumulated balances from the most recent fiscal years (example, dollars for open positions in Lynchburg City Schools/City). Said differently, FY24's unspent dollars are carried over to FY25 for one-time capital projects like stated above. 
   

5️⃣ CONCLUSION

"Expenditure Savings" are not the same as a "Tax Revenue Surplus", and simplifying the two certainly doesn't equal a "$47 million surplus."

That's very misleading. 

 

$47m Breakdown (in approximates):

- $25m Rainy Day Fund (Expected)

- $13m for One-Time Projects (Expected)

- $10m Expenses Below Budget*

- $1.3-5m Taxes Above Expected**
 

*On the balance sheet, this counts as “new dollars” even though they had originally been allocated somewhere else for a specific purpose. But, their expenses were expected. Thus, these leftovers not actually new money.
 

**The only NEW money in this formula.
 

Add them all up? It aligns with the total $47m number.

Only the incoming tax dollars above the budgeted tax-revenue FY25 qualifies as a “surplus.”

Which is $1,301,755... (not $47 million).