Davis County work session outlines 2026 budget changes; commissioners agree to $25,000 opioid-fund grant for fire district

Controller Scott Parke reviewed the County’s preliminary, unaudited 2025 financial performance and presented proposed adjustments for the 2026 operating and capital budgets at the April 21 work session.

Parke said the County spent about $6.47 million more than it brought in for 2025, but that performance was roughly $4.73 million better than the originally budgeted $11.2 million deficit. He cited $2.5 million in increased grant revenue, $1.62 million higher fees for services (including a $1.04 million reclassification of municipal services), a 3.8% rise in sales tax and a 2.9% rise in property tax. Interest income fell substantially after planned ARPA spending.

Parke outlined proposed 2026 adjustments: $22,000 in Code Blue expenses (to be covered by additional state grant money); a $1,700 correction for justice court judges’ pay; $150,000 for an unexpected golf-course asphalt repair; $50,000 for Health Department server and firewall upgrades; and a request from South Davis Metro Fire District for $37,000 in opioid-settlement funds to buy secure lock boxes for narcotics in ambulances. Parke noted the County had only allocated $29,500 for local grants and lacked a formal application process.

Commissioners debated the fire district request. Commissioner Lorene Kamalu stressed creating a formal written application and evaluation process to ensure fairness; Vice Chair Bob Stevenson favored supporting the fire district because the need had been persistent over two years; Chair John Crofts supported providing the full amount requested. The Commission agreed to a compromise grant of $25,000 to the fire district and to develop a formal grant process for future requests. Parke said he will schedule a public hearing to formalize these budget amendments.

Next steps: The Controller’s Office will schedule a public hearing to adopt the listed adjustments; staff will draft a formal application and evaluation process for future local grant allocations from the opioid fund and other small local-grant monies.

Provenance: Parke’s budget presentation and the commissioners’ discussion occurred during the work session; the transcript records the Commission’s agreement to a $25,000 compromise but does not show a formal recorded vote adopting the budget adjustments in this session.