County financial staff presented the Courthouse General budget, which covers building grounds maintenance staff salaries, county counselor costs, utilities, courthouse insurance, and capital items such as a planned phone‑system replacement.

The presenter noted that one of the largest line items is insurance, with an assumed 16.5 percent increase in the draft budget, and that building and grounds maintenance remain material costs. The county has budgeted $95,000 in capital outlay for 2025 of which approximately $25,000 was intended for a phone upgrade; staff said the phone procurement could still happen in 2025 but that, if timing prevents completion this year, the purchase would be shifted to capital outlay in 2026.

The presenter said some telephone and fax‑gateways are bundled across departments and that a portion of the telephone bill is allocated to each department (register of deeds, etc.). A county buildings and grounds official, who recently joined the county, spoke briefly and will be part of future planning conversations for maintenance and potential capital projects.

Ending: Commissioners discussed IT and phone contracting and asked staff to continue planning and to consider whether increased maintenance allocations or additional IT staffing are needed; they scheduled budget work sessions for further review.