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Lincoln County coroner warns transport costs drive 33.6% budget increase
Summary
Dr. Snell, Lincoln County coroner, told commissioners that rising transport costs and higher projected transports pushed an alternative 2026 budget to a 33.6% increase and outlined possible savings by locating coroner services locally or transferring duties; he answered detailed questions about autopsies, storage and vendor changes.
Dr. Snell, the Lincoln County coroner, told the county commission on June 10 that transport costs and an increase in bodies transported are the main drivers of an alternative 2026 budget that he presented to staff and commissioners. "The overall budget increase being 33.6% is a big jump," he said, adding that part of the rise reflects higher transport fees and a larger number of transports this year.
Snell said he revised earlier projections after reviewing five months of data and that some estimates returned "back down to what it was last year," reporting the recent projection numbers and noting that autopsy counts have not changed dramatically. He said transports were projected to drop from previously projected levels (from 76 to 60 in the revised projection) while storage cases — instances where families had not selected a funeral home — were expected to increase by about seven cases at roughly $1,000 each.
The coroner described a market shift in transport providers, saying the prior company stopped serving the county and a private firm, Dakota Embalming Transport, stepped in with a higher proposal. "The company that was doing it basically turned in our notice saying they weren't gonna transport anymore," Snell said. He told commissioners the county solicited bids and discussed alternatives with local funeral homes, ambulance services and the sheriff's office but could not find an equivalent provider able to meet staffing and operational requirements.
Snell outlined cost-saving options that would require structural change: locating a coronerfacility inside Lincoln County to reduce transports, or transferring some coroner duties to the sheriffwhich he said would remove an on-call cost if deputies took on calls. "Short of doing something like that ... the alternative proposal I've given you with a total of 33.6% increase ... I just don't have any way to really to cut that," he said.
Commissioners pressed for detail about autopsy categories and which deaths require autopsies. Snell said criminal cases and certain drug overdoses typically prompt autopsies; infant deaths and suspicious deaths also commonly receive autopsies. He noted that hospital requests sometimes trigger coroner involvement, but that his office determines whether a case meets coroner criteria. He offered to provide a case-by-case call log to show which calls were triggered by hospitals and which were clear natural deaths.
The presentation did not include a formal vote; commissioners asked follow-up questions and thanked Snell for providing a revised alternative budget and the additional context. The commission did not adopt budget changes during the June 10 meeting; Snell left the data with staff for further review.
