On Aug. 25, the Flathead County Commission unanimously approved a $92 million budget for the next fiscal year, an overall decrease of more than $13 million from the previous budget of $105.2 million passed in 2015.
According to county administrator Mike Pence, Flathead County has a beginning balance of $67.9 million and plans on bringing in $89.8 million in revenue for fiscal year 2016-2017. Expenditures are expected to hit $92 million, with a projected ending balance of $66.9 million.
The county’s capital improvement program (CIP) expects to spend more than $10.4 million on projects this fiscal year; while it is a significant portion of the expenditures, Commissioner Pam Holmquist noted that it is more than $8 million less than the previous year’s budget.
The decrease is due to the county finishing two major CIP projects: the new South Campus building, which now houses the county’s Agency on Aging program along with other departments, and the renovation of the historic jail.
“Those were two huge projects,” Holmquist said.
There are large increases within parts of the county’s budget. Personnel costs still account for a major portion of the county’s budget, with a 2 percent cost-of-living adjustment approved for a total of $597,530. Flathead County has 538 full-time employees this year, compared to 524 the previous year. Most of those 13 new positions are in law enforcement and the justice system, the commission explained, due to an increase in need, as evidenced by the county’s overcrowded jail.
Four new full-time positions were added in the sheriff’s office – two deputy positions and two detention center officers – and two more in the county attorney’s office for a total of $427,000.
Commissioner Gary Krueger said he thought the county has been forward-thinking thus far in regard to saving money for a new jail, with nearly $5 million already in the bank after three years. But until the jail is built, the county will have to deal with the increased need for jail space the best it can.
“Our response was we needed six new employees, and it’s going to cost taxpayers half a million dollars,” Krueger said.
The CIP budget also includes the county’s decision to renovate the vacated county attorney space in the Justice Center Building and turn it into a 36-bed detention facility as a stop-gap to help with the overburdened jail.
Flathead County’s total taxable value increased from $222.3 million to $224.9 million. The budget proposed a tax levy of 174.99 mills, an increase over last year’s 171.34 mills, jumping roughly 2 percent. Property taxes will increase by 3.2 percent, from $35,336,663 in FY 2016 to $36,494,669 in 2017.
This means a taxpayer with a $200,000 market-value property would see a tax increase of approximately $9.86 for the year. Pence noted that new construction provides significant new tax dollars, and will affect the actual county tax increases for individual taxpayers.
The commission said it’s proud of the overall budget, even if the commissioners felt uncomfortable at large increases, such as those within county employment, at times.
“We’re moving the county forward in a positive way,” Holmquist said.