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Yankton County commissioners begin budget cycle, weigh nonprofit requests and prioritize roads
Summary
Commissioners heard funding pitches from local nonprofits and the city, debated focusing limited resources on statutorily required services such as roads and bridges, proposed a 3% uniform pay increase, and scheduled a July 7 budget workshop to total requests and pare discretionary funding.
Yankton County commissioners opened the 2026 budget review by hearing a series of funding requests from local nonprofits and the city and by debating priorities for a tight county general fund.
Several presenters asked the commission for continuing or expanded support: Linda Stevenson said the volunteer-run Kramer Kenyon House would appreciate the county—s historic $2,000 contribution to cover maintenance and utilities; the Mead Museum requested the same $20,000 it received in the prior year to help complete a $325,000 "Dakota Story" exhibit; Beth Cottle of Ability Building Services asked for $22,385 to offset unfunded client transportation and support costs; Erin Hill of the Boys & Girls Club requested $35,000 for 2026 and emphasized that the club serves roughly 350 youth per day; Lacey of Southeast Public Transit requested $7,500 to cover rising operating costs after a regional merger; and the city manager, Amy Leon, outlined city requests including $44,685 for a community center capital share, $15,000 for Chang Gurney Airport operations, 90% of county-eligible e9-1-1 dispatch costs, and $24,000 for the Yankton Community Library.
Commissioners responded with cautious support for some programs and a broader call to prioritize mandatory county responsibilities. One commissioner framed the question bluntly: "What is the purpose of county government? Are we supposed to repair all houses?" another emphasized that roads and bridges should come first. Several commissioners proposed normalizing personnel increases by applying a 3% across-the-board raise with no additional "steps" to avoid compounding raises and to make comparability easier across departments.
To move work forward, commissioners asked county staff to total all funding "wants" and compare them to projected revenue; Patty, county staff, agreed to produce that tally. The board set a special budget workshop for Monday the 7th at 4 p.m. to review totals, pare discretionary requests and set final priorities for the provisional budget.
Procedural motions during the meeting included approval of the agenda (moved by Commissioner Kettering and seconded by Commissioner Clemish) and an adjournment motion at the end of the session (moved by Commissioner Klimesh and seconded by Commissioner Kettering). The commission did not adopt final funding decisions at the meeting.
