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Commissioners review contingency balance, defer full funding for six prosecutor positions until tax receipts are known
Summary
The board heard a contingency-list update from the county administrator showing a reduced unappropriated certification and recommended waiting for April property-tax receipts before approving additional prosecutor hires; the board discussed spreading hires over time if adopted.
County Administrator Jackie updated the commissioners on the county contingency balance and potential near-term demands on county funds, and the board discussed a prosecutor request for six new positions.
Jackie said the county's unappropriated certification stood at $9.3 million after an updated property-tax estimate of about $3 million. She reported roughly $4.4 million already encumbered for recent approvals (public-defender and admin building renovations, courthouse HVAC, settled collective-bargaining items and vehicle costs) and noted additional potential liabilities. After encumbrances the unappropriated balance was about $4.9 million, she said.
Jackie also described an updated estimate of potential payouts for several legal matters at about $3.75 million. She warned that if multiple requests materialize at once the county could be short of contingency funds and that timing of claims and court orders varies.
The prosecutor requested six extra positions. The board did not approve full funding immediately. Jackie recommended waiting until April when the first half of property-tax receipts arrives and then considering a phased rollout if revenues support the recurring salary costs. "That would be my recommendation at this time," Jackie said, advising a cautious approach to adding full-year salaries that must be sustained in subsequent budgets.
Commissioners agreed the request likely reflects a need but stressed fiscal responsibility and the difficulty of funding permanent positions before revenues are known. The board directed staff to notify the prosecutor's office of the decision to wait for the spring property-tax receipts and investigate phased hiring options.
No formal appropriation to add the positions was made at the meeting.
