Banner County commissioners on July 15 agreed to use a 3% increase as the preliminary starting point for department budgets as staff and department heads presented requests and debated whether to use larger figures for salary and operating lines.

The decision provides a single baseline for county staff to assemble the consolidated proposed budget ahead of official valuation and levy numbers expected in mid‑August.

Commissioners and department representatives said they used different approaches in initial submittals. Some department heads prepared requests using 5% increases to create room for negotiation; county payroll guidance for official salaries reflected a 2.4% cost‑of‑living figure. The board framed the 3% number as a compromise starting point that still allows adjustments when the total levy picture is assembled.

Department presenters emphasized that submitted amounts are requests, not guarantees. One department head said they had “used 5% across the board” as a starting strategy in past years, noting an expectation that final appropriation will be lower than requests. County staff explained they would roll department submissions into a single proposed budget using the agreed 3% baseline and then return with recalculated totals for further commissioner review.

The workshop included discussion of where to apply salary increases versus operating or capital lines. Commissioners and the county treasurer noted that using only the 2.4% cost‑of‑living rate for official salaries without an additional general increase could leave county pay scales behind broader inflationary pressures. Budget staff said they would model scenarios (3%, 4% and 5% on certain lines) and circulate updated figures to commissioners for review.

Next steps: staff will refigure departmental totals under the 3% baseline, incorporate the central payroll assumptions for official salaries, and produce revised proposed numbers after the mid‑August valuation figures are released. That schedule will determine whether the county needs a supplemental public hearing or interfund transfers before the fiscal year begins.