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Every January, the Kosciusko County treasurer is required to go before the County Commissioners, as the Board of Finance, and present to them all of the county’s investments and policy for the year.
In reviewing the county’s investments for calendar year 2025 Tuesday, County Treasurer Michelle Puckett reported, “The total amount of interest that we earned on investments for calendar year 2025 is $5,089,844.10. So that is a decrease over the 2024 investment total of over $5.8 million. So it’s a decrease of about $764,000.”
She attributed that decrease to the fact interest rates are starting to trickle down. At the end of 2024, the county’s interest rate was 5.06%, while at the end of 2025 it was 4.04%.
“Put that a little bit into perspective though, in 2022 our interest was 1.9 million, and we were still well over 5,” Puckett said. “Currently, we do not have any traditional investments because with our accounts at Lake City Bank, we are in the Federal Funds Plus Program, which we receive 40 basis points above the base federal interest rate. So we’re still collecting good money on the amount that we have in the bank because we are in that program, so we are definitely keeping a close eye on, of course, the economy, interest rates, where things go.”
If the interest rates continue to decrease or take a dramatic shift, Puckett said they may look at “going into traditional investments, but, at this time, I believe this program is still serving us well with us receiving over $5 million in interest for calendar year 2025.”
County Commissioner Cary Groninger asked if that goes into the county’s general operating account.
“Yes, the majority of it does. There are 11 different funds that receive a breakdown of that interest, and it just depends on how much of those funds we invest are theirs and are the county’s,” Puckett replied. “So, county general itself in calendar year 2025 collected $4,560,402.96. So, yeah, the majority of that does go into the general fund.”
County Commissioner Sue Ann Mitchell stated, “And that is something that over the years has certainly fluctuated up and down. The interest rate has had a huge impact on return, so I think it’s great, too, that you can do it seamlessly through the checking account, through a banking account, and not have to take bids and all that and not garner any charges ... it’s a great program.”
Hopefully, Puckett said, the interest rate will “kind of neutralize” a little bit.
“But, of course, as we look at the news and our economy, you know there’s pluses and minuses as far as whether the interest rate goes up and down, how it affects the economy, but we are definitely keeping an eye on those interest rates and an open-ear to other possibilities of investments. So if we have to go back to the traditional because that is a better thing for the county, we will definitely do that,” she stated.
Puckett then presented the investment policy for 2026.
“So each year, you have to review and approve the investment policy for the upcoming year, so this is for 2026. No changes have been made in that policy in the previous year, but it is something that I have to present to you that has to be adopted,” she explained.
The commissioners unanimously adopted the policy.
They also re-elected Commissioner Bob Conley as the Board of Finance’s president and Puckett as secretary, and approved the cancellation of warrants.
“So, each year, again, I come to you and present to you the outdated or the stale dated warrants. So the list that I provided for you are any checks that were written before Dec. 31, 2023, and they were still left uncashed as of Dec. 31, 2025,” Puckett said. “So the total number of checks are 59, and the dollar amount is $8,058.12.”
With the commissioners’ approval of that list, the treasurer and auditor will work on voiding them. Once those voids are processed, the money will go back into the fund that they were issued from, she stated.
