Fannin County, Texas -- With time running out to finalize the county budget for the upcoming fiscal year, all five members of Fannin County Commissioners Court were present for a special meeting Friday, August 15, 2025.
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No one addressed the court in public forum.
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By a 3-2 vote, Fannin County Commissioners Court voted to take $1.3 million out of reserve in order to spend $980,000 to install a concrete parking lot at the Justice Center, and $263,271.20 to construct storage areas for the district clerk and county clerk at the Justice Center.
Pct. 1 Commissioner Troy Waggoner, Pct. 3 Commissioner Kurt Fogelberg and Fannin County Judge Newt Cunningham voted in favor of taking the money out of the county's reserve fund, with Pct. 2 Commissioner A.J. Self and Pct. 4 Commissioner Doug Kopf casting opposing votes.
The county is expected to retain at least 25% of its annual budget in reserves. The budget for the first quarter last year was $3.56 million. With that amount set aside, the county will now only have $938,000 left in reserves.
"That scares me," cautioned Fannin County Auditor Alicia Whipple, adding that should a costly catastrophe occur early in the fiscal year, it could leave the county in a precarious financial situation.
The county has already earmarked $1 million of reserves for the Justice Center furniture and $637,500 is restricted for the Highway 121 project.
There was some discussion about using the Hwy. 121 funds to balance the budget, but Kopf objected.
"There are too many families losing loved ones on Hwy 121," Kopf stated.
Fannin County and the City of Bonham are both setting money aside as an incentive for TxDOT to make Hwy. 121 a four-lane thoroughfare all the way into Bonham.
It was pointed out during the meeting that the grand façade on the front of the Justice Center is costing taxpayers more then a million dollars.
