Overview
Great Bend's FY2025 audit shows a city that spent more than it took in during 2025 — receipts of $42,480,053 against expenditures of $44,729,804 — yet still ended the year with $43,716,292 in unencumbered cash, because it entered the year with $37,513,145 plus large reserve balances. The draw came mainly from the capital and sales-tax funds: Capital Improvements Reserve spent $7,135,277 against $6,664,571 in receipts, and Sales Tax Infrastructure spent $2,246,491 against $1,089,173. The General Fund itself spent $321,098 more than it took in.
Source: City of Great Bend FY2025 financial statements (PDF).
At a glance — FY2025 audited
Source: Summary Statement, FY2025.
Reporting entity walk — FY2025
The walk below is the audit's own summary statement for the total reporting entity, excluding agency funds (it includes the Great Bend Commission on Aging as a related municipal entity).
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Beginning cash, Jan 1, 2025 | $37,513,145 |
| Receipts, FY2025 | $42,480,053 |
| Expenditures, FY2025 | −$44,729,804 |
| Ending cash, Dec 31, 2025 | $35,263,394 |
Outstanding encumbrances and accounts payable of $8,452,898 bring ending cash to the reported ending unencumbered cash of $43,716,292. The audit's composition of cash independently confirms the total: total cash of $43,991,950 less agency funds of $275,658 equals $43,716,292. The city held a revenue neutral rate hearing for 2025, and its budget was not amended during the year.
General Fund — FY2025
The General Fund is the City's chief operating fund. It spent $321,098 more than it took in during 2025.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Beginning cash, Jan 1, 2025 | $6,485,515 |
| Receipts, FY2025 | $19,044,600 |
| Expenditures, FY2025 | −$19,365,698 |
| Ending cash, Dec 31, 2025 | $6,164,417 |
Outstanding encumbrances and accounts payable of $323,825 bring the General Fund to an ending unencumbered cash balance of $6,488,242 — about 34% of the fund's FY2025 expenditures, essentially unchanged from its $6,485,515 opening balance.
Major funds — FY2025
Each row below is that fund's own audited line from the summary statement. These are selected funds, not the full fund list, so the rows are not totaled — the city total is in the walk above.
| Fund | Receipts | Expenditures | Ending unencumbered |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Fund | $19,044,600 | $19,365,698 | $6,488,242 |
| Water Utility | $2,665,825 | $2,333,899 | $2,334,582 |
| Sewer Disposal | $3,055,364 | $2,940,633 | $2,103,740 |
| Capital Improvements Reserve | $6,664,571 | $7,135,277 | $8,514,494 |
| Sales Tax Infrastructure | $1,089,173 | $2,246,491 | $6,990,595 |
| Sales Tax Improvement | $1,210,192 | $1,023,982 | $1,870,484 |
| Capital Equipment Reserve | $459,415 | $1,041,161 | $2,672,727 |
| Bond and Interest | $480,774 | $441,234 | $1,434,132 |
| Economic Development | $500,312 | $411,729 | $1,597,423 |
| Convention and Tourism | $328,132 | $269,750 | $935,969 |
| Self Insured | $1,789,015 | $1,849,255 | $1,387,308 |
| KDOT Grant | $587,198 | $602,116 | $1,048,064 |
| Sewer Line Replacement | $92,943 | $0 | $1,132,987 |
| Library | $659,524 | $650,000 | $18,222 |
| Special Street | $513,139 | $497,436 | $463,174 |
Note the Capital Improvements Reserve's ending balance: its ending cash of $3,765,062 plus $4,749,432 in outstanding encumbrances and accounts payable gives the $8,514,494 unencumbered balance — the encumbrance add-back is unusually large for this fund and is reported exactly as audited. The Library fund ended the year nearly spent out at $18,222 after $650,000 in expenditures against $659,524 in receipts.
Source: Summary Statement, FY2025.
Sources & notes
- Only source used: City of Great Bend, Kansas, Financial Statements for the year ended December 31, 2025 (audited, regulatory basis). Read the audit (PDF).
- Sum checks: the reporting-entity walk, the General Fund walk, and the composition-of-cash reconciliation were checked before publishing; each matches the audit's stated totals exactly.
- What is missing: this page has no net position, capital-asset, or debt figures — the KMAAG regulatory basis does not recognize them — and no current-year budget. A newer verified document would be needed to update this dashboard.
- City palette: no verified City of Great Bend palette was on file, so this page uses the neutral Hometown Numbers dark-glass theme rather than a city color.