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Commissioners ask departments for payroll forecasts and pause 2026 budget rollout
Summary
Facing mixed monthly revenue and department shortfalls, the Trumbull County Board of Commissioners directed departments to submit six-month payroll projections and asked staff to hold off on finalizing the 2026 budget process until the county stabilizes 2025 figures.
At a June budget meeting, Trumbull County commissioners directed all departments, elected officials and office holders to prepare conservative payroll projections covering the remainder of 2025 and to provide those figures to the commissioners as part of a six-month financial review.
Commissioners said payroll is the county’s largest recurring expense and must be the first item departments assess before asking for additional operating or capital funding. Several officials told the board payroll and IT are the two categories most at risk of shortfall; other pressures include utility increases and maintenance backlogs. The auditor’s office and treasurer warned that while some departments are underspent, others — notably utilities and some maintenance lines, and in a few cases payroll lines — are trending high against year-to-date budgets.
The board also agreed to delay full attention on the 2026 preliminary budget until the county has a clearer picture of 2025 results. Commissioners asked the auditor’s office to provide a monthly revenue-and-expense summary (with percent expended by line and division) and said they would re-evaluate allocations after the June sales-tax update. One commissioner recommended departments take the next two to three weeks to “forecast payroll” and return with line-level numbers. The auditor agreed to provide a consolidated spreadsheet to help commissioners assess payroll needs and to pair payroll projections with building operating expenses to show a full picture.
No layoffs or furloughs were ordered at the meeting; county HR representatives reminded the board that layoffs carry additional costs (unemployment, partial benefits, etc.). Commissioners emphasized they are not at a “doomsday” point but said departments must be prepared to make staffing and line-item adjustments if revenue reverses.
Board staff proposed a follow-up meeting in the weeks after June’s data arrives to review consolidated payroll and expense figures and to consider partial allocations if a sustained surplus is confirmed.
