Lancaster County Council reviews FY26 administrator's recommended budget, proposes 5% pay increase and new positions

Lancaster County Council heard a presentation of the county administrator's recommended FY26 budget on Tuesday, during which County Administrator Dennis Marston and Chief Financial Officer Sabrina Harris outlined revenue projections, staffing proposals and fee schedule changes that would affect operations across public safety, public works and parks and recreation.

"I am pleased to start the presentation of the FY26 county administrator's recommended budget," Marston said as he opened the presentation. The council approved the meeting agenda at the start of the session; the motion was moved by Miss McGriff, seconded by Mr. Neil and approved unanimously by voice vote.

The recommendation frames the budget around continued population and development growth in Lancaster County. "Our county continues to experience growth, looking at our population increasing by 3.1% in just 2024 alone. Over the past five years, the county has grown by 16.4%," CFO Sabrina Harris told council, citing department performance indicators and increased workload for areas such as building permits, public safety and fleet maintenance.

Why it matters: the recommended plan would increase recurring personnel costs while using a portion of the county's fund balance and conservative revenue forecasts to balance near-term requests. The administration emphasized avoiding unfunded commitments even as it proposes new…