An Inside Look at Tipp City's Financial Picture
Vol. III, No. 215 - A look at how Tipp City is holding up financially
On December 30th, Troy wasn’t the only community here in Miami County to have their 2024 Comprehenisve Annual Financial Report released by the Ohio Auditor of State. Tipp City also had their report released and the report shows a community that is living within its means, investing in its future, and keeping its books in very good order.
The city’s overall “net position” – a good shorthand for long‑term financial health – grew by about $2.4 million dollars in 2024, reaching roughly $116.7 million dollars, which means assets continue to outpace debts even as major projects move forward.
Independent auditors issued a clean opinion on the city’s 2024 statements, confirming they are fairly presented and follow national accounting rules. Tipp City also continues its long run of earning a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting from the Government Finance Officers Association, the high bar for public finance reporting. That combination of outside review and professional recognition matters, because it tells residents the numbers are not only balanced, but carefully explained.
On the day‑to‑day side of the house, the General Fund is feeling tighter but remains solid. This fund, which pays for police, fire and EMS, streets, parks, and general government, brought in about $11.2 million dollars in 2024 while spending and transfers totaled about $13.3 million dollars. The result was a planned drawdown of reserves, with the year‑end balance moving from about $9.0 million dollars to $6.8 million dollars. That is a noticeable drop, but it still leaves several million dollars in the bank to cushion the city if the economy stumbles. The city has just over six months of cash reserves on hand, a healthy amount for any size community.
The main driver of those higher costs is public safety. Tipp City is finishing a big shift from a mostly volunteer, paid‑per‑run fire and EMS operation to a combined department with full‑time, part‑time, and volunteer staff on duty around the clock. The city hired a full‑time chief, an assistant chief, four captains, and eight firefighter‑paramedics in 2023, and 2024 shows the first full year of that larger payroll. Police officers and other city workers also received wage increases to keep pay in line with similar communities, and health insurance costs crept up, which adds to the pressure.
On the income side, there are encouraging signs. Income tax, which is the city’s workhorse revenue source, rose to about $8.7 million in 2024, a 2.4 percent increase over 2023 and a signal that local jobs and wages are holding up. Investment earnings, helped by higher interest rates, jumped from being almost an afterthought a few years ago to a meaningful revenue stream in 2024. The city’s pooled cash and investments in its governmental activities grew by about $4.2 million, in part because of short‑term borrowing to support property acquisition for uptown redevelopment.
Tipp City is also steadily building and rebuilding the physical backbone of the community. Total capital assets, net of depreciation, reached nearly $89.8 million at the end of 2024 across streets, buildings, parks, utilities, and equipment. The city completed expansion and renovation of the Government Center, invested roughly $1.19 million in street and traffic work, and put several hundred thousand dollars into parks and recreation projects. In the utility funds, construction is underway on a fourth electric substation and a major sewer expansion to serve industry, along with automated meter reading upgrades that will improve billing and data.
The utility operations themselves are doing what they should do: paying their own way. Electric, water, sewer, and refuse are accounted for like businesses and together increased their net position by about $1.4 million in 2024. The Electric Fund’s net position slipped by a little over $800,000 as cash was used for big capital projects, but this was largely offset by the rising value of its infrastructure. The Water and Sewer funds both grew their net position while working through costly upgrades, including shared investments in regional water and wastewater plants that serve Tipp City and its neighbors.
Debt is present, but it is being used as a tool, not as a crutch. At year‑end 2024, total long‑term obligations stood at about $13.1 million, with roughly $6.8 million in utility bonds and the rest in low‑interest state loans and earned employee leave. That level is comfortably under Ohio’s legal debt limits and is being paid down on a set schedule. On top of that, the city issued $4.5 million in short‑term notes for the new Uptown Redevelopment Fund and backed that effort with a $3 million transfer from the General Fund to buy and stabilize long‑troubled strip centers at the city’s front door.
Tipp City has more than $7 million in signed contracts for additional work, ranging from sewer projects to interchange improvements, which shows a city leaning forward rather than coasting.
For Civic Capacity readers, the story this report tells is straightforward: Tipp City is fiscally healthy, making conscious choices to upgrade safety and infrastructure, and taking on visible redevelopment challenges in a way that keeps the community’s overall financial footing strong.
A New Handbook to grow Civic Capacity!
Recently, we created a new digital handbook, “The Citizen’s Guide to Public Records”. This handbook is designed to help residents have a better understanding of public meetings and meeting records. It’s filled with templates, ideas and other information that will open a new world of public affairs.
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Want to Learn More About Troy’s Businesses?
Our publication has recently released our September 2025 Economic Abstract, the most comprehensive and up-to-date report on the businesses and industries in the City of Troy. For those that want to understand our community’s business and industries, this is a must-have report.
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