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Doña Ana County presents FY26 budget framework, 58 new positions and $23.6M in capital projects
Summary
Budget staff presented a FY26 draft that uses the economist’s top‑20 GRT forecast, increases general fund revenue assumptions and includes 58 new positions (mostly for fire rescue), major capital projects and a plan to align spending with the county strategic plan.
Lucio Lutrell, Doña Ana County’s budget and research officer, presented the county’s FY26 draft budget to commissioners on April 15, outlining revenue assumptions, expenditure changes, 58 proposed new positions and capital requests totaling tens of millions of dollars.
Lutrell said the budget team used the economist’s ‘‘top‑20’’ average ARIMA forecast for GRT in developing revenue assumptions for FY26, though Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) rules limit how property‑tax revenue can be budgeted. The draft budget projects general‑fund revenues rising about 27% (an increase Lutrell quantified as roughly $30 million) as some previously restricted GRT now post to the general fund. Staff told the board they would submit a preliminary budget to DFA by May 31 and a final budget by July 31.
Key revenue and expenditure highlights Lutrell presented include: operating revenue increases totaling about $18.5 million (roughly 9%); a large unentered grant balance pending review (not included in current totals); anticipated investment‑revenue increases (staff modeled a 66% increase but adopted a conservative figure after treasurer discussions); and an estimated use of reserves that, on the face of the draft, would represent a draw of roughly $52.8 million. Lutrell explained that after excluding restricted draws, capital in process and one‑time items the county’s recurring revenues would exceed recurring expenditures by an estimated $2.5 million.
On the expenditure side, the budget includes 58 new positions with an estimated recurring cost of about $4.1 million. Fire rescue accounts for 44 of the new positions (including paramedic floating responders, firefighter EMTs, lieutenants and an anticipated academy class), and the presentation anticipates the county preparing to provide ambulance service in unincorporated areas. Other new positions include community development inspectors and code officers, fleet technicians and two IT positions. Lutrell said budget estimates use midpoints or step‑3 pay ranges and employee‑only benefit elections for cost projections.
Lutrell also summarized capital in process and new capital requests. Capital in process (previously approved or underway) totaled about $23.6 million and includes projects such as a transitional‑housing fund allocation and a planned fire‑admin complex. New capital requests included detention upgrades (body scanner, vacuum system replacement), fleet replacements (20 vehicles; 17 replacements and 3 new additions), IT infrastructure refreshes (server refresh, virtual platform replacement, fiber to the fairgrounds), utilities projects (SCADA system replacement and UV disinfection spare parts), and six fire vehicles to staff the new EMS positions.
Other notable budget items Lutrell highlighted: a proposed standalone economic development department with a preliminary budget of about $327,000 (largely professional services), an estimated health‑insurance cost increase (staff initially modeled 8.3% and later discussed 8.7% with an incremental county cost), planned 3% cost‑of‑living adjustment for unrepresented positions (not including step plans), and a $2.0 million anticipated chargeback for potential ambulance services recorded under other revenues.
Commissioners asked departmental and policy questions during the presentation. Ken English, the county IT director, described operational benefits of centralizing software and hardware purchasing within IT to improve lifecycle management and find consolidation opportunities. Utilities staff confirmed the SCADA system is more than 20 years old and that replacement parts and vendor support are increasingly unavailable, which staff said makes replacement necessary rather than optional.
Lutrell said the budget team and two pilot departments (treasurer and IT) are working to map expenditures to the county strategic plan to improve transparency about how dollars support strategic goals. He also noted one‑time grant and capital amounts would be adjusted at final budget closeout.
The county will continue budget work sessions on May 13 and May 27 and expects to circulate supporting documentation and the economist’s full report to the board for any follow‑up.
