USU Extension Seeks Modest County Funding Increase for 2025; Highlights Grants and New Programs

Utah State University’s Davis County Extension presented its 2025 county funding request to the Davis County Budget Committee on Sept. 23, asking for approximately $293,919 — about $6,395 more than the prior year — to cover a 3% cost-of-living adjustment and a targeted salary adjustment identified in a recent USU salary audit.

The extension presenter said the requested increase is limited: most line-item changes are internal reallocations of operating funds rather than new county expenditure. The presenter told the committee one county-funded staff assistant was flagged in a USU salary audit as paid below the average for comparable positions, prompting a 4.88% adjustment for that position; three full-time positions were reviewed in the audit and only one was affected.

The presenter described how building costs are shared with USU Kaysville: the extension covers about 45% of shared facility operating costs plus a customary contingency (typically 5%). This year’s contingency for unexpected repairs was roughly $1,600. Committee members confirmed the extension’s county request is about $293,919 (a roughly 2% year-over-year increase); the presenter noted the county had awarded just under $288,000 the previous year after a $292,000 request.

Beyond county funding, the extension reported substantial external support: for 2025 to date the office reported approximately $2,520,000 in funding derived from grants and USU-paid salaries tied to county-based faculty. The presenter said USU faculty in Davis County accounted for about $1,180,000 in grant funding so far. The extension also noted nine USU faculty are housed in Davis County and two 4-H program coordinators are paid by USU rather than the county.

Program highlights included new hires and services in watershed education and equine-assisted services. The watershed faculty member was credited with serving more than 6,000 youth and 1,500 adults in water-education activities and securing volunteer hours and grant support. Equine-assisted programming — described as horse-powered reading, resiliency programs for junior-high-age youth and mental-health work with adults — reached roughly 43 children in early reading efforts and hosted an industry event called “Connecting Hearts and Hooves” with more than 100 attendees and nine statewide organizations participating. The presenter said veteran programming is planned for the coming year.

Committee members asked about a previously referenced stress test; the presenter said she had no specific results to report from a university-wide stress test and clarified the term refers to modeling the impact of hypothetical budget decreases.

Committee members also discussed the county-owned arena, which the presenter said is booked most weekends for events such as team roping and barrel races. The presenter reported about $4,000 in rental revenue from personal-use bookings, roughly $2,000+ from stall rentals at a July rodeo, and about 80 stalls rented overnight for other events. County funding supports 4-H horse-club activities and helps keep participation affordable for local youth.

The presentation concluded with committee members thanking the presenter and noting the extension provides broad programmatic reach while leveraging significant grant and USU-paid resources. The committee did not take a formal vote during the presentation; procedural follow-up on contracts and leases (separately managed under the agricultural heritage center) remains part of ongoing staff work.