Clinton County's elected fiscal body voted unanimously to adopt the county's 2026 budget and to approve separate budgets for the county airport and the Wildcat Solid Waste Management District at a special Friday meeting.

"Last step in the budget process, budget adoption, third reading of the budget," the presiding official said while noting that the auditor's office had incorporated salary and insurance changes into the numbers presented to the board.

The budget totals the presiding official read aloud included a general fund of $16,351,002.49 and itemized amounts for multiple tax-rate-supported funds: an assessor's reassessment fund of $266,807; a debt service item listed at $569,112 and a separate bond payment for an annex building at $1,905,000; a wheel tax budget of $937,500; a cumulative courthouse fund of $347,150; a highway budget of $4,500,912; a local road and street fund of $1,006,751; a bridge fund of $989,000; a health department fund of $684,273; EMS listed in the transcript as $22,008,097 (read aloud with some correction during the meeting); a capital development fund of $182,000; economic development (assessed tax) $1,031,180; central dispatch other budget $1,502,230; county share of public safety local income tax $1,357,908; CASA $32,928; surveyor user fee $13,750; jail local income tax $2,137,483; clerk record perpetuation $20,000; federal inmate housing $1,272,546; 2021 road bonds $445,220.20; sewer and water bonds $688,500; EMS portion funded by local income tax $1,768,005.78; local public health services (Health First Indiana) $253,006.51; identity security protection $10,000; plat book maintenance $38,400; recorder perpetuation $202,095; adult probation administration $125,002; juvenile probation administration $5,000; landfill tipping fee $1,522,620; and prosecutor infraction deferral $7,000.

The presiding official read totals for the property-tax-supported page as $31,258,148 and for the second page as $11,402,894. The presiding official concluded the read-through by saying, "That is your county budget for 2026."

Before the vote, a department representative said they had an opening that they needed to fill for a records position and confirmed that the position was included in the budget; the presiding official acknowledged that the position was in the budget.

Following that exchange, a motion to adopt the county budget was made and seconded and the body voted 6-0 to adopt. The presiding official announced the vote: "Motion carries 6 to 0. County budget is approved."

The body then considered two additional budgets for taxing districts for which it acts as the sanctioning elected fiscal body. For the airport, identified in the meeting as "Ordinance number 20 25 dash 18," the presiding official read an airport general budget of $1,477,500 and a cumulative airport building budget of $88,000 for a combined airport budget of $1,565,500. A motion to approve the airport budget carried 6-0.

The body also approved the Wildcat Solid Waste Management District general budget of $395,231 by a 6-0 vote.

With those approvals completed, the presiding official said the meeting's business was finished and asked whether anyone had additional items to bring before the body. No additional fiscal-business items were raised and the special meeting concluded.

Votes at a glance:
County budget (read as "County Ordinance 20 20 five-seventeen") Motion: adopt the 2026 county budget; Mover: Carol; Second: Joe; Outcome: approved, tally 6-0.
Airport budget (read as "Ordinance number 20 25 dash 18") Motion: approve airport budgets (general and cumulative building); Mover: Jeff; Second: Joe; Outcome: approved, tally 6-0. Airport totals read: general $1,477,500; cumulative building $88,000; combined $1,565,500.
Wildcat Solid Waste Management District budget Motion: approve Wildcat Solid Waste general budget; Mover: Joe; Second: Mary; Outcome: approved, tally 6-0. General budget read: $395,231.

(See Actions[] for structured motion records and provenance.)