Dubuque County supervisors approve FY27 operating and capital plans, keep levy at $9.30

The Dubuque County Board of Supervisors on Feb. 26 approved the county’s operating and capital spending plans for fiscal 2027 and voted to hold the overall levy at $9.30 amid uncertainty over state property‑tax changes.

Stella, the county’s budget presenter, told the board the operating budgets that departments submitted are fully entered into the system and that the package includes wage adjustments of 2.7% for elected officials, deputies and non‑bargaining staff and health‑plan changes. She said the proposed FY26 revenue is $68,700,000 against $87,500,000 in expenditures (a large in‑year drawdown driven by capital projects) and that FY27 is projected at roughly $70,000,000 in revenue and $77,000,000 in expenditures.

The board voted to approve the operating budget as presented. On capital items, Stella asked the board to approve the FY27 list shown in the packet; supervisors approved capital projects totaling $2,867,562. The board also approved a motion to transfer $1,000,000 from the general basic fund into the long‑term capital fund for FY27 to bolster reserves for future capital needs.

Discussion before votes focused on fund‑balance and levy strategy. Stella presented seven levy scenarios that modeled the effect of state “ratcheting” rules and potential new uses of supplemental levies, and she included a placeholder assumption of $3,000,000 for possible EMA/PSAP regionalization costs in FY28. Some supervisors urged caution and recommended holding the levy to preserve fund balances until the state’s decisions are final; others preferred lowering the levy now or shifting parts of the levy to new supplemental levies.

The board adopted Option 1 — keeping the overall levy at $9.30 and using transfers into the general supplemental levy as needed — in a recorded motion and vote. A separate motion set the Sunnycrest transition target date to Jan. 1, 2027, clarifying the timeline for that lease/transfer action.

Budget staff also flagged several other items: REAP and grant funding for a Heritage Trail paving project near Dyersville; a $255,000 set of general‑basic capital requests for emergency radios and elections equipment; and reimbursements to the long‑term capital fund associated with the DLAC building agreement with the city.

On benefits, the board discussed non‑employee and early‑retiree health coverage. Stella said there are about 22 non‑employees enrolled, with roughly 10 early retirees; staff estimated a family‑plan cost at about $2,000 per month (around $24,000 a year) and noted the county’s HRA subsidy and HIPAA limits on producing person‑level cost data. Stella will work with Cottingham & Butler to better quantify retiree costs and return with options for FY28.

Stella said the county will enter the tax asking data into the Department of Management system to generate the tax notice (entries due by the March 5 deadline), and the board set public hearing dates: a preliminary hearing April 6 and the full budget public hearing April 20.

The meeting closed after a brief planning update from Ed Raver, planning and development director, and routine housekeeping; the board adjourned.