Montrose County staff present final 2026 budget proposal, including $1M boost for Westin Annex; $20,000 supplemental appropriation noted

County finance staff presented the final proposed 2026 Montrose County budget to the Board of County Commissioners and said it was being presented "for adoption and appropriation." The staff summary said the overall budget is up about $879,000 — roughly 0.7% — from the October proposal and that a resolution was before the board.

The presentation outlined program-level changes that staff said were driving the increase: the removal of five proposed full-time positions at the sheriff’s office and associated vehicle and capital costs; a $1,000,000 increase to the Westin Annex school building project; a $500,000 increase for the fairgrounds and events center; and a roughly $207,000 reduction in heavy-fleet purchases (Pelham Works) that staff said could get better pricing in 2025. "We did increase the debt issuance... from 5,000,000 to 6,500,000," county finance staff said, adding that annual debt-service costs tied to that issuance rise from about $500,000 to roughly $756,000.

County finance staff also clarified how the county’s PSST allocation appears in the packet. "The revenue side has the 70%... going to the sheriff's office," the staff member said, and noted that the packet reflects the 70% on the revenue side and the 30% PSST fund on the expenditure side to support other allowed uses. Staff pointed to "the ballot language and resolution from 2007 that was implemented in 2008" as the basis for how those percentages are applied in the budget presentation.

Separately, staff presented item number 2 — described in the packet as "a 2nd supplemental appropriation, Resolution No. 57 of 2025" — to amend the current-year budget to cover a $20,000 expense to the Southern Waste Fund. Staff said the cost arose from a hazardous-waste event handled in partnership with the City of Montrose and that state law requires the county to amend its legal appropriation to cover the expense. The transcript does not record a vote on Resolution No. 57 during the segments provided.

On scheduling, the chair said he wanted Talmadge present for an executive-session discussion related to negotiations and workforce housing at the west end of the county to support the Four Seasons Resort project, and asked staff to reach him; the chair proposed moving that item to a meeting on the 17th and proceeding with an executive session with the chair and the HR director. The transcript provided here ends with staff and commissioners troubleshooting clocking and livestream audio problems; no final vote on the 2026 budget or the supplemental appropriation was recorded in the segments provided.

The board packet referenced in the presentation was cited as having a one-page summary on "page 7," including the listed capital changes and debt-service updates. Next procedural steps were not recorded in this excerpt: the items were presented for consideration and may return for formal action at a subsequent meeting once any required follow-up or missing participants are present.