Teton County staff opened a multi-hour budget review noting a proposed 3% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) included as a placeholder across general-fund departments. Finance staff (identified in the meeting as Kim) told commissioners medical insurance costs continue to be the single biggest driver of expense growth: staff used a planning assumption of roughly a 10% increase in premiums and cited an estimated current-year medical insurance spend near $920,000. That rise, plus benefit volatility for newly hired employees, produced the largest swing in department totals.

Staff emphasized the difference between one-time and ongoing costs. Capital items and one-time purchases can be paid from remaining-cash balances in each fund; by contrast, raises that increase base pay create ongoing, compounding budget obligations. Kim reiterated county policy and practice that leftover fund balances generally must be left inside each fund and that the county seeks to hold roughly 25% of general-fund operating costs as a reserve. With the general-fund operating base discussed at about $8 million, staff said that guideline implies roughly $2 million should be retained in reserves.

Commissioners and department heads discussed options to soften compensation pressure without raising base pay across the board: the county can award one-time bonuses from year-end surplus but cannot convert those amounts to recurring salary without budgetary consequences. Several department heads called the current budget environment tight; some urged identifying small line-item savings and delaying nonessential capital purchases. Staff said they will produce an updated remaining-cash breakdown after the July 1 tax turnover and will return with refinements to the draft.

Next steps identified at the meeting included a second-round budget review with department heads to find savings "a thousand dollars here and there," an updated projection after the tax turnover, and consultation with commissioners about whether and how to prioritize ongoing salary increases versus one-time bonuses.