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Monroe County Council adopts 2026 county budget after weeks of cuts and debate
Summary
After eight weeks of hearings and line-by-line edits, the Monroe County Council approved a 2026 county budget that councilors said maintains services and preserves a 3% cost‑of‑living adjustment for county employees; the final vote was 6-1.
The Monroe County Council voted 6-1 on Oct. 14 to adopt the county’s 2026 budget after weeks of revisions and public hearings.
Auditor Carly Gregory told the council the changes made since the last meeting and anticipated bond revenue removed a deficit from the 2026 plan. "We have now a surplus, a simplified 2026 surplus amount of $2,364,060," Gregory said, adding that levy funds showed a much smaller combined surplus: "we have a much smaller surplus of $401,240." Gregory also said the general fund now shows a $955,277 surplus on the fund-by-fund 4B calculation.
The new adopted totals printed in the ordinance read by the council show a total adopted county budget of $112,974,815, with an adopted tax levy of $53,357,322 and a total adopted tax rate of 0.4812. Gregory and council members noted the county’s adopted overall tax rate rises from the previous year’s 0.3705 to the new level, driven in part by a large debt‑service item in the ordinance.
Why it matters: Councilors said the budget preserves essential services and a 3% cost‑of‑living adjustment (COLA) for employees while requiring continued fiscal caution. Councilor Aster Iverson, who spoke at length in support of the budget, framed the adopted plan as a set of compromises reached under difficult state and local revenue conditions. "This budget keeps promises," Iverson said, adding that the council had worked to maintain health care coverage and personnel lines for county staff despite the state and federal funding shocks they faced this year.
Council discussion and context: Councilors repeatedly raised the limits on local authority and the constraints imposed by state actions and recent revenue changes. Iverson and others detailed a sequence of external shocks during 2025, including reductions in grant funding and a local revenue revision that reduced expected income. Councilor Henry and others urged ongoing attention to reserve balances and cautioned that some balances are restricted or not transferable between funds.
Several council members thanked the auditor’s office and county staff for the long process of producing the revised 4B forms and line‑by‑line budget work. "I wanna applaud you for your work on this. It's very exciting that we've gotten to this point," Gregory said in response to questions about fund balances.
The vote: The ordinance adopting the Monroe County 2026 budget (Ordinance 2025-36) passed on a 6-1 roll call; Councilor Hawk cast the lone no vote. The council also adopted the 2026 budgets for the Monroe Fire Protection District and the Monroe County Solid Waste Management District on the same night — those votes were unanimous (7-0) on their respective ordinances.
What’s next: Council members said they want continued monthly oversight of reserves and recommended routine monitoring of levy fund cash balances and debt schedules. Several councilors also asked staff to return with clear project timelines and spending plans for bond‑funded projects before bond issuances are finalized.
