County Fair Advisory Board members and fair staff said at their meeting that recruiting and retaining qualified livestock and specialty judges has become difficult and that the board included budget requests to increase judge pay in its 2026 funding request. Board volunteers and staff asked fellow board members to send a letter to the Board of County Commissioners ahead of the county budget hearing.

Board members said judges face long workdays: one volunteer described poultry judging that took about 14 hours and noted judges often receive roughly $200 for that work. That same volunteer described goat judging as taking “about 9 hours,” and said the time required for some species makes it difficult to attract judges for the county fair.

The board discussed strategies to make judge recruitment easier, including grouping certain species (for example, grouping sheep with swine and beef) so a judge can be paid for a larger block of work and expanding outreach to judging schools and neighboring fairs. The board discussed a county 4-H council scholarship program that has paid for some volunteers to attend judge-certification schools, with recipients agreeing to do judging or education duties in the county after certification.

Staff said the fair office included additional money for judges, superintendents and premiums in the draft 2026 budget. Melissa (fair staff) advised that the master fee schedule must be amended to change payout amounts and suggested board members submit a letter to the Board of County Commissioners before the board’s final budget presentation (scheduled for Oct. 23) to highlight those priorities.

Board members agreed they would need to know whether budget increases were approved before finalizing judge offers for 2026; staff said the county budget is expected to be finalized in December. Several volunteers volunteered to continue compiling judge contact lists and exploring training opportunities at land‑grant universities and regional judging schools.

Ending: The board did not take a formal vote on pay levels at the meeting. Staff and volunteers will continue outreach to judging schools, will compile lists of potential judges, and will pursue the requested budget changes with the county administrator and Board of County Commissioners.