Mohave County supervisors adopt modified tentative budget, set June 16 public hearings

The Mohave County Board of Supervisors on a unanimous vote adopted a modified tentative FY26 budget Wednesday, approving a package based on the manager's recommended option that funds many departmental requests while setting public hearings on the final budget and tax levies for June 16.

The board's action adopted the county's recommended option (Option B as presented by finance staff) but approved a modified Option C spending envelope in motion, adding $113,000 for a previously frozen county attorney position, $15,000 for digital evidence storage software, $600,000 earmarked as a capital placeholder for a District 3 office, and $4 million as a placeholder for a county morgue. Supervisors also asked staff to schedule Truth-in-Taxation hearings for the county's primary property tax rate and the flood control district levy and to hold a special board meeting for final budget adoption on June 16.

The budget presentation opened with county manager Sam Elders and finance director Luke Morneon, who described revenue adjustments since the April budget workshop and outlined three budget options. Morneon told the board the recommended option remains "structurally balanced" across a five-year forecast but noted several post-workshop changes: about $200,000 additional PILT revenue, roughly $55,000 from updated special district fee allocations, and a $70,000 transfer from the general fund to public health…