Carroll County secondary roads budget rises largely for construction projects and pay adjustments

The Carroll County Board of Supervisors reviewed the Secondary Roads fiscal year 2026 budget on Jan. 27, with department staff reporting a total budget increase of about $1.3 million driven mostly by construction project costs and modest payroll increases.

The budget presentation showed a tax asking of $3,207,379 for all-property valuation and $2,914,144 for rural valuation, an increase of roughly $119,000 from the prior year tied to higher property valuations. Road-use tax receipts were projected at $4,645,398, about $250,000 higher than the previous year. The department reported an estimated beginning balance going into FY26 of roughly $4.2 million, and total receipts (including the beginning balance) of about $12.5 million.

County staff described the FY26 construction program as the principal driver of the increase. The construction budget of $3,112,500 is roughly $1.1 million higher than last year; within that figure the department has set aside $1.5 million to ensure funds are available to pay contractors if projects occur before or after the new fiscal year. Staff emphasized project scheduling uncertainty around the July 1 fiscal-year boundary as a reason the construction line appears inflated in one year or the other.

Specific local projects identified for FY26 included a box culvert replacement on Wilmer Township line (estimated roughly $260,000), resurfacing and HMA projects on county routes including M-66 south of Manning (estimated $1.2 million), box replacements, diamond grinding on N14 and M68 contingent on patching, and an HMA resurfacing on M33 south of Highway 141. Several projects were described as either scheduled for DOT lettings or planned as local lettings.

On operations, the department described modest category shifts: administration and engineering up about $28,000, roadway maintenance shifts in specific line items (for example a decrease of about $150,000 in one granular line and increases in blading and entrance categories), and general roadway items up roughly $147,000 driven by new equipment purchases and repair budgets. The fiscal-year equipment plan lists two snow-plow trucks ($580,000), a motor grader ($390,000) and a skid-loader trailer ($15,000); staff also previewed potential FY27 equipment needs such as a semi tractor and side-dump trailer.

Staff reported a total payroll increase across the department of roughly $110,000 and proposed a 5% across-the-board pay increase for secondary roads classifications, with slightly larger adjustments for a few positions the manager said were notably below comparable counties. The presenter said the pay proposal followed a review of surrounding counties and similarly populated jurisdictions, and that the department is “falling behind” market averages.

Supervisors pressed on constraints. One supervisor noted county-wide discretionary dollars available for raises were limited — roughly $228,000 countywide — and cautioned that final decisions must consider the full county budget. Board members and staff also discussed the uncertainty of project timing (some projects may span FY25 and FY26), the need to maintain carryover to pay contractors, and how carryover is being used to catch up delayed work.

The presenter said granular materials (crushed concrete, limestone and gravel) were budgeted at $1.2 million, down about $150,000 from the prior year, reflecting shifting needs. Staff also said the fuel depot is paid off and will require mainly repair funding going forward.

Looking ahead, staff said most construction lettings for several projects were already scheduled with DOT or planned locally, and they will return with more detailed project timing as dates firm. No formal vote on the Secondary Roads budget was taken at the Jan. 27 hearing; the session was a departmental budget review and discussion.

Continued budget deliberations will fold these line items into the county-wide budget process so supervisors can weigh trade-offs across departments.

The department presentation and board discussion included project-level details, reserve/carryover estimates, and a personnel-pay proposal that supervisors said they will consider in the context of county-wide revenue limits and competing departmental requests.