The budget grew by three-quarters
What’s the Scoop With Broach compared the Auditor-Controller-County Clerk budget unit’s fiscal 2024–25 actual results with Kern County’s adopted 2025–26 plan. Total appropriations rise from $5,027,031 to $8,834,963—a $3,807,932 increase, or 75.7%.
Revenue moves in the opposite direction, falling $220,315 to $1,102,200. The magnitude of net county cost therefore increases from $3,704,516 to $7,732,763, a $4,028,247 rise, or 108.7%.
| Measure | FY 2024–25 actual | FY 2025–26 adopted | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $1.32M | $1.10M | −$0.22M |
| Salaries and benefits | $4.59M | $7.34M | +$2.74M |
| Services and supplies | $0.85M | $0.73M | −$0.12M |
| Total appropriations | $5.03M | $8.83M | +$3.81M |
| Net county cost | $3.70M | $7.73M | +$4.03M |
Payroll and a new transfer line explain most of the increase
Salaries and benefits rise $2,744,056, or 59.8%, while services and supplies decline $119,198. The adopted column also adds $1,240,416 in other financing uses, compared with no such actual expense in the prior-year column.
Those two changes account for more than the net increase because smaller categories and expenditure reimbursements offset part of the growth. The summary schedule does not identify the purpose or recipient of the new financing-use line.
What the records establish—and what they do not
The original finding is not merely that the office received more spending authority. The local financing burden grows faster than appropriations because projected receipts cover a smaller share while payroll and a transfer line expand.
The schedule does not report vacancies, election workload, audit volume, accounting-system projects or staffing changes. It therefore cannot establish whether the increase is excessive or sufficient; it establishes the size and composition of the adopted financial shift.
Method and limitations
The newsroom transcribed the actual and adopted columns from Schedule 9 and recomputed each dollar and percentage change. Because Kern prints net county cost as a negative balancing figure, this analysis compares its absolute magnitude.
An adopted appropriation is authority to spend, not proof that every dollar will be used. Revenue and transfers can change during the year, and actual 2025–26 results will be needed to determine how much of the larger county commitment materialized.