Cass County approves 2026 budget with 54.18‑mill cap; commissioners pledge follow‑up on Broadway Station senior center

The Cass County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously on Sept. 15 to approve the county’s final 2026 budget as presented and directed the county finance director to levy taxes to support the budget with a maximum mill levy on county property of 54.18 mills.

Interim Finance Director Tim Wilson told the board the preliminary budget approved in August totaled $178,193,425 and reflected a 1.63‑mill increase from the levy used for 2024 taxes. The final budget includes one new position, one position adjustment, a 2.4% cost‑of‑living increase for employees and an increase in health‑insurance costs (Wilson said the county’s health‑insurance consultant had estimated about a 2.3% increase). Wilson said budget notices were mailed to roughly 76,000 Cass County property owners as required by North Dakota Century Code §57‑15‑02.

The board opened a public hearing on the proposed 2026 budget. Cindy Simmer, a Fargo North resident, urged the commissioners to find money to keep Broadway Station, a North Fargo senior center, open. Simmer described the center’s role in preventing isolation, its SilverSneakers exercise group, and the center’s social value. She said Valley Senior Services had requested $2,000,000 (the amount…