Grand County commissioners and staff sparred over travel budgets, a higher CivicClerk subscription fee and the purpose and size of a roughly $90,000 discretionary fund while reviewing draft 2026 budgets.

Commission travel allocations varied across commissioners in the draft: several line items showed $7,500 for travel while others were lower. One commissioner pushed back on proposals to reduce travel budgets, saying travel has brought federal and other project funds into the county. Another commissioner described the proposed travel increases as "ludicrous" while asking that the commission "walk the same walk that we're asking everybody else to walk" by targeting a 5% decrease across departments. No final change to travel limits was adopted at the meeting.

Staff noted the CivicClerk subscription price rose to $7,832 (from prior budget figures of about $5,500) and said the line item appears twice in the packet (both commission and administration); members agreed to keep the subscription in the commission budget and zero it out in administration to avoid double-counting. Members also discussed public-notices budgeting and agreed to consolidate that item in the commission budget.

A prolonged discussion focused on a large discretionary fund in the commission budget (~$90,000). Board members and staff said a variety of recurring items and one-off contributions have historically been paid from that account, including a $10,000 contribution to the Multicultural Center, partial payments for a watershed/water-modeling study and other civic contributions. Several members urged moving known, recurring or contract expenses into specific line items (for example, professional/technical services) rather than leaving them in an unattributed discretionary account. One commissioner recommended reducing the discretionary total toward the historically spent level and reassigning recurring items into labeled budget lines for clarity.

The commission budget conversation also touched on meeting-room audiovisual and IT needs: staff reported repeated speaker/screen glitches in the commission chambers and discussed options including a replacement switch, improved camera/laptop setups so remote attendees and the public can see speakers, and routing such expenses to IT or professional services when appropriate.

Ending: No final votes changed commission travel, CivicClerk or discretionary totals at the meeting. Staff was asked to provide clearer itemization for the discretionary fund, to consolidate civic-software charges to one account, and to return updated budget sheets at the next meeting.