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Lincoln County EMA budget presenter warns of steep EMPG cuts and mountaintop revenue losses
Summary
Bo, the agency's budget presenter, said cuts to the federal EMPG grant (down from $50,500 last year to an estimated $30,000) and lost mountaintop tenants will force greater reliance on Lincoln County's general fund and prompted staff to reconcile budget spreadsheets.
Bo, the agency's budget presenter, told the Lincoln County Emergency Management Agency budget meeting that reductions to the Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) and lost rent at mountaintop tower sites will shrink expected revenue and require larger draws on the county's general fund.
The presenter said last year's EMPG award was about $50,500 but that this year's award is uncertain; he estimated roughly $30,000 and said the actual amount will not be known until the notice of award. "I'm expecting about 30,000 there," he said, and added that FEMA-managed EMPG awards have repeatedly declined over recent cycles.
Those federal reductions come as the agency also loses tenants on the Black Mountain mountaintop site, the presenter said. He described the Crown Castle tower contract on Black as "upside down," saying recurring annual increases by the tenant have left the county receiving less rental income than the tower's associated costs and estimated an annual shortfall of about $8,000.
Why it matters: the EMPG decline and the mountaintop revenue loss together increase pressure on the agency's operating budget. The presenter said some items that previously were billed inside EMPG-funded categories were broken out this year (for example, repair and maintenance was increased by about $5,000), meaning more operating costs now show up in the general fund if federal support falls short.
Details and context: the presenter walked the meeting through line-item changes he made while converting prior lump-sum EMPG entries into more specific categories. He said utilities were previously recorded in a single EMPG utility line and have now been redistributed to discrete categories (electric, fiber, propane, generator maintenance). For 2023 the presenter listed utilities at about $22,000 and said rent for a site is $1,050 every three months (about $4,200 per year). He also moved $1,000 from utilities into the training/travel line to cover fuel, lodging and other travel for required trainings.
On contract services, the presenter said onSolve/Code Red costs are roughly $13,000 and that a prior three-year contract negotiation had frozen a lower rate, saving money. Historically, he said, EMPG paid roughly half of wages and some program costs; this year, he said, EMPG appears likely to cover wages only, which reduces its overall value to the agency.
He reported that the Forest Service restructured a contract and that Montana Sky vacated a mountaintop site, reducing anticipated mountaintop revenue by about $16,420 compared with the prior year. He said Highway Patrol pays $500 and that he raised other tenant rates (naming DOT sites increased to $600 each) as part of efforts to recover revenue. The presenter also said he found an earlier Forest Service payment in county records that had lacked a clear reference and apologized for the spreadsheet confusion.
What comes next: staff agreed Nikki and Wendy will reconcile and clean the master spreadsheet so the budget totals are accurate; the presenter offered to follow up with any additional numbers staff request. The chair closed the budget meeting after confirming there was no further business.
Ending: The meeting adjourned with staff tasked to clean and re-submit corrected budget details; the agency will await the formal EMPG notice of award before finalizing how much general-fund support will be required.
