Benton County commissioners discuss using local option sales tax for bridge and road engineering costs

Benton County commissioners discussed whether to use local option sales tax dollars to pay engineering and inspection costs for bridges and road projects in the county's five-year plan.

The discussion focused on how much engineering work the county can keep in-house versus contracting out, and how that choice would affect the pace of projects funded by the local option sales tax, which commissioners said has about 12 years remaining on the list and is already more than halfway through the planned projects.

County staff said several projects could generate engineering costs in 2026: a set of remaining bridge designs with an estimated $15,000 in engineering expense for some bridges; County Road 56 bridge design at about $50,000; and preliminary engineering on County Road 80 reconstruction that staff said could have total engineering costs up to $400,000, with roughly a quarter of that cost incurred in 2026 if design work begins next year. Staff also noted that, depending on inspection arrangements, consultant inspection costs could run as high as $150,000 per bridge if separate inspectors were needed.

"For budget purposes I went bigger than smaller," a commissioner said when introducing the item, noting the alternative of cutting projects from the five-year plan but expressing concern that doing so would slow progress on road and bridge infrastructure. County staff responded that engineering and inspection workloads often come in peaks and valleys, and the county is at a peak now because several bridges built in the late 1960s are reaching replacement age.

Commissioners pressed staff on whether the county could hire more engineers or inspectors to do work in-house. Staff said recruiting qualified technicians has been difficult compared with past years, that current staff were hired at entry points in career progression, and that some roles (for instance, certified bridge inspectors) require qualifications current staff do not yet hold. One commissioner asked rhetorically whether $1.3 million could be used to hire staff rather than paying outside consultants; staff answered that the market for experienced candidates is thin.

No formal motions were made to change the five-year plan at the meeting. Commissioners agreed it would be useful to meet as a committee of the whole with all commissioners present to review options and any required changes to the sales tax authorizing resolution. They proposed holding that committee meeting following the regular board meeting on Oct. 21, 2025.

Staff flagged that some uses of local option sales tax for engineering may not require amending the sales tax resolution, but said a revision could be needed depending on whether commissioners want to add projects not already listed on the resolution. Staff said they would not hire additional outside consultants while the board considered the options.

Costs and staffing estimates discussed during the meeting: $15,000 (remaining bridge engineering for some bridges in 2026), $50,000 (complete bridge design for County Road 56), up to $400,000 (engineering for County Road 80 reconstruction, with roughly a quarter potentially in 2026), and up to $150,000 per bridge for inspection if separate inspectors were used. The local option sales tax list was described as having about 12 years left and being more than halfway complete.

Commissioners set a committee-of-the-whole discussion to follow the Oct. 21 board meeting to continue deliberations and to ensure a full board could consider any direction to staff.

The county identified no immediate formal action at the meeting; staff will return with clarifications for the committee-of-the-whole discussion.