The Yuma County Board of Supervisors on June 2 approved a tentative budget for fiscal year 2025–26 and set a combined public hearing and truth-in-taxation hearing for Monday, June 23, 2025, at 9 a.m.

County Administrator Ian McGahy, presenting the plan, said the tentative budget is “responsible, it's fiscally sustainable and representative of the goals outlined in our strategic plan.” The board voted to adopt the tentative budget and to set the June 23 hearing after a motion and second; the motion carried on voice vote.

The tentative budget contains a mix of program and personnel changes and budget adjustments. McGahy and staff highlighted a one-time website contract cost “just over $566,000” and an ongoing annual website cost “of nearly $25,000.” Staff also reported a net decrease of 22.125 full-time-equivalent positions across all funds compared with the current year, including a slight increase of 0.360 FTE in the general fund and reductions in special-revenue grants, and no new FTEs were added from 28 requests reviewed during the process. The county will include a 3% performance-based compensation increase for employees in the proposed budget.

Staff said the overall tentative appropriations are down about 3.4% from the prior year; McGahy also explained that the tentative budget sets the maximum the board can consider before adopting a final budget. The board will use the June 23 hearing to adopt the final budget and property tax levy.

Supervisors questioned the schedule for the budget process and the ability to absorb last-minute publishing or legislative changes. One supervisor asked for the process to be moved up in future years to allow “at least 15 days in the month of June” to fix publication or procedural problems; McGahy and other staff noted the county has fallback options, including operating on the tentative budget if a final adoption slips into July.

Board members also raised internal accountability concerns. One supervisor said they supported employee compensation increases but wanted stronger, consistent enforcement of county policies and accountability across departments. McGahy acknowledged the comments and said accountability is a focus for management and leadership training in the coming fiscal year.

The budget presentation also noted program-level adjustments: an off-cycle timing change to a Microsoft Office 365 project, and that most reduced positions were vacant, grant-funded roles with expiring funding; the health district eliminated additional grant-funded positions since the recommended budget was presented.

The board approved three specific actions as part of the motion: (a) provide direction to staff on revisions after department hearings, (b) adopt the tentative budget for fiscal year 2025–26, and (c) set the combined public hearing and truth-in-taxation meeting for 9 a.m. June 23, 2025, when the final budget will be considered.

The county will publish budget documents and staff remain available to present the interactive budget spreadsheet and long-term financial forecast before the final hearing.