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Sedgwick County treasurer presents largely flat 2027 tax-office budget, cites tag-office revenue bump from SB 325
Summary
County Treasurer Brandy Bailey presented a largely unchanged 2027 tax-office budget, highlighted progress on a phased tax-system replacement and forecasted roughly $720,000 in tag-office revenue from Senate Bill 325's $5 fee between July and December.
County Treasurer Brandy Bailey told the Board of County Commissioners that the treasurer's office budget request for 2027 is largely unchanged from 2026, with a proposed general-fund ask of $1.643 million compared with a revised 2026 figure of $1.664 million. She said the modest decrease is driven by personnel changes and tenure-related turnover.
Bailey described the office as fully staffed and cross-trained, with several long-tenured employees nearing retirement. She said the county clerk's office and the treasurer are collaborating on a phased replacement of an outdated tax system, with full implementation expected sometime next year. "Our budget hasn't changed in several years, and we spend about the same amount each year," Bailey said.
During questions, Bailey said the motor-vehicle/tag office is operating at about 78% staffing capacity and that Senate Bill 325, which takes effect July 1, will add a $5 fee on certain transactions. "We're looking at an increase ... of around $720,000 this year coming into our office just because of that $5 fee," she said, describing the revenue as coming from expected increases in online and mail-in renewals. Bailey said that revenue should reduce or eliminate the need for a subsidy request for the tag office this fiscal year.
Bailey also highlighted customer-service improvements under consideration, including a more user-friendly website and a potential one-stop online portal that would let residents access tax bills, deeds and tag services from a single place. The treasurer requested continued collaboration with other elected offices to streamline public-facing services.
The presentation closed with a breakdown of the treasurer's 2027 request by category, including personnel and contractuals; Bailey stood for questions but no formal motions were taken during the morning session.
Next steps: commissioners requested follow-up materials and said staff would present any proposals for tag-office subsidies or user-facing inserts to the budget at subsequent briefings.
