Coconino County adopts 2026 budget, holds Truth in Taxation hearings; primary rate falls while property valuations lift levies

Coconino County supervisors on Tuesday adopted the county’s fiscal year 2026 budget and completed required Truth in Taxation hearings for the county and its special districts. The board approved a $443,009,427 countywide budget and set a $15 million one‑time stability fund to help cover natural disaster response, cash‑flow needs and potential funding shortfalls.

The board also adopted a primary property tax rate of $0.483 per $100 of assessed value and approved secondary rates for flood control (unchanged at $0.50), public health services (unchanged at $0.25) and the library district (increased by $0.02 to $0.3156). Because limited property values rose on average by about 4.4% countywide, many property owners will see small tax increases despite the county’s lower primary rate.

Finance director Siri Mullaney and county staff presented the budget after publicly posted budget hearings in May. Mullaney described the adopted budget as balanced and noted it reflects the board’s emphasis on maintaining core public safety and statutory services while addressing rising costs for utilities, software, motor pool vehicles and the continuing need for capital work. The county will continue major capital efforts, including flood control projects tied to post‑wildfire mitigation, a tribal nations service center and other facility investments.

Supervisors described the budget as “lean” and said the $15 million stability fund — set aside from existing general fund cash — is an additional safeguard beyond the county’s 25% general fund reserve policy. The adopted policy formalizes a general fund emergency reserve equivalent to about 25% of general fund revenue.

The board conducted the statutory Truth in Taxation process required when a taxing jurisdiction’s collections can increase from higher property valuations. For a sample property used in county materials — a home with an estimated market value of about $732,000 — the combined county impact from all four county levies (primary, flood control, public health and library) was about $23 annually under the adopted rates. Supervisors repeatedly emphasized that Coconino County’s primary property tax rate remains among the lowest in Arizona.

The board adopted the following, by roll call where required: the primary county tax rate at $0.483 per $100 (primary levy $11,733,517); the Flood Control District secondary rate at $0.50 (levy $11,002,713); the Public Health Services District secondary rate at $0.25 (levy $6,073,249); and the Library District secondary rate at $0.3156 (levy $7,666,869). The board also adopted separate budgets for the Flood Control District ($47,710,993), Public Health Services District ($21,243,486), Jail District ($57,882,765), Library District ($7,498,506) and the small Tusayan Special Lighting District ($15,000).

Supervisors said they had denied several funding requests during May’s hearings and described the adopted budget as emphasizing continuation of essential services, careful wage/benefit decisions to retain staff, and targeted capital and program investments. Finance staff noted about two‑thirds of the general fund revenues are sales tax and state shared sales tax, a volatile revenue stream that informed the board’s decision to strengthen reserves and create the stability fund. The final budget documents and schedules were posted as required by state law.

The board will carry the fourth step of the statutory tax process — final adoption of tax rates for all taxing entities — when county and other jurisdictions’ tax rate forms are filed with the state later this summer.