Warren Evans
Wayne County Executive Warren Evans walked into a massive financial mess when he first took office on Jan. 1, 2015. He faced an accumulated deficit of $82 million, a yearly structural deficit of $52 million, $1.3 billion in unfunded health care liabilities and a pension fund that was unfunded by nearly $900 million, according to press release.
Now, a little more than a year later, the county's general fund shows a surplus of $5.7 million for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2015, the county said. It was the first time in eight years the county showed a surplus.
"Having a surplus for the first time in eight years is a significant achievement when you consider the financial challenges we faced just over a year ago," Evans said in a statement. "Despite reaching this milestone my administration will continue to practice the fiscal prudence necessary to ensure we can complete the Gratiot jail, reduce our outstanding liabilities and repair our outdated facilities."
A county press release stated:
Executive Evans bold steps in the face of the County’s financial crisis eliminated the structural deficit, substantially reduced the unfunded health care liabilities and began the process of chipping away at the unfunded pension liabilities. The accumulated deficit was eliminated by larger than expected transfers from the Delinquent Transfer Revolving Fund (DTRF) from the Wayne County Treasurer’s Office. With the elimination of the structural deficit and the substantial reduction in unfunded future legacy costs, Wayne County will no longer need to rely on unexpected windfalls from the DTRF.
