Commissioners approve FY2026 proposed budget, nonunion wage COLA +3% and multiple targeted wage adjustments

Rockingham County commissioners on April 24 voted to approve the commissioners' proposed FY2026 budget and set the nonunion wage increase at a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) plus 3 percent.

Commissioners said the budget vote will be followed by public hearings and executive committee review in early May. The COLA-plus-3% approach for nonunion employees was moved and seconded in public session; commissioners recorded affirmative votes.

Commissioners also discussed wage-compression concerns and considered several options for targeted wage adjustments for specific employees and positions. Several of those wage-adjustment motions were discussed in nonpublic session under RSA 91-A (personnel matters) and then returned to the public record. On return to public session the board approved five wage-related motions (summarized below) intended to address compression and supervision pay relationships.

Approved wage actions (as announced on the public record after nonpublic): - Approval of "wage adjustment option 3" for certain positions (identified by initials in the public record) described as COLA-plus adjustments; the board said the adjustments address compression so supervisors are not paid less than supervisees. The transcript lists affected initials including JW and CE and indicates the adjustments are contingent on passing annual evaluations. - Approval of a 12.11% wage adjustment for HB, effective on the employee's annual evaluation date, contingent on a passing evaluation; the board recorded the motion and second. - Approval of a 5% total increase for AS in lieu of the standard annual evaluation increase, contingent on a passing annual evaluation. - Approval of a new rate (listed in the memo as 53.61) for one classification as outlined in the human resources memo dated 04/21/2025, effective on evaluation dates and contingent on passing evaluations. - Approval to amend an earlier proposed regrade wage adjustment for unit managers to use the option-2 proposal for wage adjustments effective 07/01/2025 pending Executive Committee approval.

Commissioners stated the targeted adjustments were intended to mitigate wage compression and retain staff; several commissioners also acknowledged concerns about the county's reliance on fund balance to smooth budgets across multiple years and noted the need to balance employee pay with long-term fiscal sustainability.

Nut graf The board's actions set pay increases for nonunion staff and approved targeted corrections intended to prevent supervisory compression. Commissioners also approved the overall proposed budget for FY2026 and scheduled related public hearings in early May.

Background and context Commissioners said the county is trending toward savings on the nursing salary line (the board cited roughly $1 million in projected savings as agency staff are replaced by county hires) and that some earmarked transfer adjustments will be necessary to move funding between payroll and benefit lines. But they also raised concern about continued reliance on fund balance (roughly $5 million per year drawn in recent years, according to one commissioner) and the need for longer-term fiscal restraint.

Ending The board will finalize formal adoption actions in follow-up meetings and public hearings; some wage adjustments are contingent on passing employee evaluations and pending executive-committee approvals where indicated.