GOSHEN – Orange County government departments have been directed to limit 2026 purchases to essential items and those funded through grants or other specifically designated funding sources, according to an internal email.
The directive, issued by Tim Flanagan, the county’s director of operations, on Friday, cites current budgetary constraints and calls on departments to carefully evaluate expenditures as County Executive Steve Neuhaus prepares his budget for fiscal year 2027. Several Orange County legislators have already forecasted a potentially difficult budget season for the administration.
Purchases must be necessary to maintain essential operations, meet critical service needs, or fulfill grant-funded requirements, the email states.
The Budget Department will review purchase requests, and any request rejected by the department may not be resubmitted without prior authorization from the County Executive’s Office. Departments are prohibited from independently revising and resubmitting rejected requests.
The directive also requires all county credit card purchases to receive advance approval, regardless of the amount. Credit cards may not be used for purchases that have not received the required approval.
The restrictions extend to travel, including conferences, training, meetings, and other travel-related expenses. Travel requests must be essential to county operations or directly supported by grant funding, and all required approvals must be obtained before arrangements or commitments are made.
Department heads are responsible for communicating the requirements to staff and ensuring purchasing and travel requests are reviewed and approved before submission or commitment.
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