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County waits on Baker Tilly model; council shifts timelines for budget work
Summary
The Boone County Council was told its consultant model for the reworked property-tax and revenue environment is still in progress, delaying key budget decisions until August.
The Boone County Council was told its consultant model for the reworked property-tax (LIT) and revenue environment is still in progress, which will push many budget decisions into August and beyond. Council members agreed to use the August workshops to set priorities and to reserve final decisions until staff can supply updated revenue estimates.
Councilwoman Ritchie and county staff described a multi-step process: the council will review the Baker Tilly model when it becomes available, hold an August 12 public workshop for a deeper dive, and use liaison meetings to identify budget priorities in the meantime. "I wish I had a model to bring to you today," a staff member said; the consultant had told staff it anticipated being ready around July 25, but staff also cautioned several counties expected to miss the Aug. 1 statutory filing deadline.
Staff emphasized that many revenue inputs remain uncertain. The county is awaiting legislative and Local Income Tax (LIT) estimates, and staff recommended treating the current revenue numbers as a worst-case scenario until lit estimates and the full model are available. That means departments should assemble “must have” lists and “maybes” so the council can rapidly align priorities when the model arrives.
The timeline is consequential. If the county receives the model and supporting assessed-value data shortly before the August workshop, staff said they will try to run a brief walk-through with the compensation committee and selected council members and then push directives to department liaisons. If the model comes later, staff warned, liaison meetings might be less useful because department form-1 budgets could already be submitted.
No formal council action resulted; members asked staff to email meeting takeaways and to schedule follow-up calls among the budget committee and liaison leads once the model is released. Staff noted that the county’s 2024 general-fund ending balance provides some one-time leeway for projects, but long-term decisions depend on final model outputs and LIT estimates.
