Overview
Hamilton County's General Fund spent $6,001,322 against $5,649,229 of receipts in 2025, a $352,093 deficit that drew ending unencumbered cash down to $1,588,017. General government ($2,497,632) and highways and streets ($1,230,385) dominate spending, and the county transferred $933,739 to related entities — hospital, extension council, airport, VIP and others. The whole reporting entity took in $11,364,132 and spent $12,159,187, ending with $4,172,095 of cash. The audit also notes a cash-basis violation: the Motor Vehicle Fees fund overspent its cash balance.
Source: Hamilton County 2025 audit (Kansas Department of Administration, PDF).
At a glance — audited actuals, year ended December 31, 2025
Source: Hamilton County 2025 audit, Statement 1 and Schedule 2-1.
General Fund — audited actuals 2025
Receipts build: taxes $4,900,657 + shared revenue $235,312 + licenses, permits & fees $44,476 + health charges $32,038 + ambulance $103,294 + prisoner care $17,816 + interest $181,878 + other $36,370 + operating transfers in $186,659 − neighborhood revitalization rebate $89,271 = $5,649,229. Beginning cash $1,940,110 − deficit $352,093 = ending unencumbered cash $1,588,017; plus $182,559 of accounts payable = ending cash $1,770,576. The category build below sums exactly to $6,001,322.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| General government | $2,497,632 |
| Public safety | $600,330 |
| Highways and streets | $1,230,385 |
| Sanitation | $3,322 |
| Health and welfare | $317,382 |
| Economic development | $4,954 |
| Culture and recreation | $385,919 |
| Rural fire debt service (principal $23,374 + interest $4,285) | $27,659 |
| Related municipal entity transfers | $933,739 |
| Total General Fund expenditures, actual | $6,001,322 |
Within general government: employee benefits $1,335,068 (health insurance $979,042, KPERS $190,047, Social Security $160,814), courthouse general $596,655, county attorney $151,847, appraiser $142,288, county clerk $97,224, register of deeds $95,915, county commissioners $89,327, county treasurer $74,393. Related-entity transfers: hospital $698,850, Hamilton County VIP $97,108, Extension Council $93,781, airport $44,000.
Major funds — audited actuals 2025
Each row's walk (beginning + receipts − expenditures = ending) was verified against its fund schedule. Note on Statement 1: in the extracted summary table the receipts and expenditures columns read swapped for the special-purpose, bond-and-interest and business-fund totals; the figures below follow the fund schedules, which walk exactly.
| Fund | Receipts | Expenditures | Ending cash |
|---|---|---|---|
| Library | $150,073 | $155,300 | $8,675 |
| Library Employee Benefits | $84,444 | $87,242 | $3,302 |
| Enhancement 911 | $89,340 | $47,094 | $186,098 |
| Fire District #1 | $44,819 | $41,881 | $18,217 |
| Library Sales Tax (bond & interest) | $276,521 | $208,900 | $178,013 |
| Sunflower Square (business) | $109,888 | $70,880 | $165,135 |
| Solid Waste Management (business) | $161,905 | $107,374 | $362,158 |
| Health Reserves (business) | $318,551 | $232,728 | $378,595 |
Library Sales Tax walk: $110,392 + $276,521 − $208,900 = $178,013. Sunflower Square: $125,007 + $109,888 − $70,880 = $164,015 unencumbered, plus $1,120 of payables = $165,135 cash. Solid Waste: $301,548 + $161,905 − $107,374 = $356,079 unencumbered, plus $6,079 = $362,158. Health Reserves: $280,926 + $318,551 − $232,728 = $366,749 unencumbered, plus $11,846 = $378,595. The non-budgeted Capital Improvement fund is the entity's swing item: $4,063,965 of state and federal aid against $4,702,699 of spending (capital outlay $4,217,922), ending at $516,089 unencumbered ($575,758 cash).
Source: Hamilton County 2025 audit, Statement 1 and Schedule 2.
Debt & notes
The audit is presented on the Kansas regulatory basis, which does not recognize capital assets or long-term debt in the statement itself; no consolidated long-term debt total is stated in the extracted notes, so none is claimed here. Compliance note from the audit: the cash-basis law (K.S.A. 10-1113) prohibits creating indebtedness in excess of available monies in a fund, and at year end the Motor Vehicle Fees fund had overspent its cash balance. The county did not hold a revenue neutral rate hearing for this year and made no budget amendments.
Sources & notes
- Only source used: Hamilton County, Kansas, Financial Statement with Independent Auditor's Report, year ended December 31, 2025 (Kennedy McKee & Company, September 21, 2026). Read the audit (PDF). Note: the inventory record lists this file under a “Jobs.ks.gov” host; the working copy was retrieved from the Kansas Department of Administration (admin.ks.gov) at the address above.
- Sum checks: General Fund receipts build sums to $5,649,229; the nine expenditure categories sum to $6,001,322; cash walk ($1,940,110 − $352,093 = $1,588,017; + $182,559 = $1,770,576); entity walk ($4,702,280 + $11,364,132 − $12,159,187 = $3,907,225; + $264,870 = $4,172,095); Library ($13,902 + $150,073 − $155,300 = $8,675); Enhancement 911 ($143,852 + $89,340 − $47,094 = $186,098); Fire District #1 ($15,279 + $44,819 − $41,881 = $18,217).
- Column-order note: in the extracted Statement 1 summary, the receipts and expenditures columns read swapped for the special-purpose, bond-and-interest and business-fund total rows (e.g. the special-purpose total row prints 5,537,983 / 4,848,038, while the fund schedules sum to receipts 4,848,038 and expenditures 5,537,983, which walk to the printed ending balance). This page follows the fund schedules throughout.
- Jurisdiction palette: no verified Hamilton County palette was on file, so this page uses the neutral Hometown Numbers dark-glass theme rather than a county color.