Montgomery County Chief Financial Officer Dean Dortone provided an update on county finances at the Board of Commissioners meeting held on June 3 in Norristown, writes Rachel Ravina for The Reporter.

“I will say that this year has been a challenge in terms of the close-out of 2020 with all the new grant revenues that came in,” said Dortone, along with “the county transitioning into a new financial system.”

Montgomery County also onboarded a new external auditor in this period, he said.

Dortone presented findings from 2020 and the first quarter of this year amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

For the preliminary 2020 general fund, $477.1 million was reported in revenue and $436.3 million in expenditures. This provided $40.8 million of revenue over expense primarily from CARES Act funding that reimbursed eligible general fund personnel expenditures.

And while the largest revenue factors were real estate taxes and federal and state grants, overall fee revenue dropped by $3.2 million. This included the income generated by the sheriff’s department, clerk of courts, and parking.

Meanwhile things are already improving, with Dortone referencing an “overall stable budget trend” for this year’s first quarter.

Read more about the county financial update in The Reporter.