County taxpayers will not see a millage increase in 2022.

The county commissioners at their Wednesday meeting approved a 2022 county budget with expenditures totaling $253.6 million.

Next year's budget is significantly higher than the current $189 million in expenditures, which county officials attribute to the spending of the millions in federal grants received through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) grant, American Relief Plan Act and other funding received by the county and its various departments during the coronavirus pandemic.

Included in the federal funding received by the county is $13 million in emergency rental assistance program funds, $36 million in Emergency Solutions grants, plus Community Development Block Grants and others, said Ann Brown, the county's budget and human services finance director.

The 2022 general fund is listed at $81.7 million, which also is a significant increase over the current general fund of $69.7 million.

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