Clear Creek sheriff asks for 2.6% budget increase, board hears competing retirement options

Sheriff James Harris told the Clear Creek County Board of County Commissioners on Oct. 7 that the sheriff's proposed 2026 budget would be $9,570,000, a $245,000 increase (2.6%) over 2025, and described the increase as focused on training, pay steps and investigative capacity. "Our proposed budget for '26 is $9,570,000. It would be a $245,000 increase from FY25," Harris said during a work session.

The budget request highlighted several discrete priorities: a larger training budget to professionalize the department and cover academy costs; funding for pay step increases that were not budgeted in 2025; and new staffing to reduce overtime and improve investigative follow-up. Harris told the board the sheriff's office expects academy tuition of about $12,000 per recruit if prior grant support is unavailable, and said the department plans to pursue external vendors to assess and expand training.

Why it matters: commissioners and county staff said they want clearer dollar-line detail before committing. County finance staff warned the salary and benefit lines did not yet include some payroll burdens (vacancy reconciliations, PTO cash-outs and the full benefit cost if deputies move to FPPA), and asked the sheriff to return with revised, fully burdened numbers. County Manager Colton and finance director Rachel emphasized the board's preference to see both the program costs and any offsets (grants,…