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Butte-Silver Bow council refers $167.8M preliminary FY2027 budget to finance committee
Summary
Finance & Budget Director Karen Hassler presented a $167.8 million preliminary FY2027 budget on June 29; the Butte-Silver Bow Council voted 10–0 to refer the plan to the Finance & Budget Committee for further review. The plan trims capital spending as several ARPA-funded projects wrap up and proposes modest salary and operating cost increases.
Karen Hassler, Finance & Budget Director, presented a $167.8 million preliminary FY2027 budget to the Butte-Silver Bow Council of Commissioners at a special meeting June 29 in Council Chambers. Chief Executive J.P. Gallagher called the meeting; Committee member John Morgan moved to refer the proposal to the Finance & Budget Committee and the motion was seconded. The council approved the referral 10–0 and adjourned without taking further action on the budget.
Hassler said the FY2027 appropriation is $167.8 million, a decrease of $113,999, or less than 1 percent, from the adopted FY2026 budget. She told commissioners that capital outlays are lower than in recent years — $42.6 million for FY2027 versus $50.5 million in FY2026 — because several large ARPA-funded capital projects are nearing completion, including the Basin Creek Dam rehabilitation, the Moulton water filtration and dam rehabilitation projects, and Metro Sewer effluent reuse and solids-handling work.
The presentation highlighted increases in personnel and operating costs. Salaries, wages and employer-provided benefits rise by about $2.2 million (roughly 4 percent), and wages overall increase about 3 percent; the proposal also adds an employer contribution of $60 per month toward employee health insurance. Operating, maintenance and contracted-service expenditures are estimated to increase by about $2.98 million, driven by a 21.3 percent rise in property and liability insurance (about $250,436), higher software and video-storage/IT security subscriptions (approximately $357,000), utility increases (about $575,000), and roughly $1 million in additional professional services, which the packet ties in part to a $750,000 Department of Reclamation RMAP fund item and $100,000 for Resiliency Hub engineering and design.
Economic development and grant-line changes were also outlined: the packet lists planned donations and grants including $900,000 in TIFID #2, $500,000 in the URA Loan Fund and $1.19 million in the Harrison Avenue URD fund, plus a $278,800 line for the Montana Opioid Abatement Trust. The presentation noted a projected reduction of about $673,000 in CDBG grant funding tied to several projects pending FY2026 reconciliation.
New capital requests and carryover projects were described in detail. New requests include $1,069,910 for final courthouse window replacement, $450,000 for a courthouse roof, $265,000 for new body and vehicle cameras for law enforcement, and $2.85 million for road projects such as rehabilitation of Copper and Arizona streets (Phase 1). Carryover projects called out in the packet include a $4 million EDA project for the Silver Lake water system and a federally funded FLAP road construction project on Roosevelt Drive. The packet also lists several grant-funded items, including MT DEQ-funded street sweepers and AFG-funded SCBA replacements for the fire department.
Hassler reported revenue-side details: gross-proceeds taxable value is expected to rise by about $1,015,339 (roughly $375,675 in additional property tax revenue) and interest income is projected higher than last year (the packet cites an estimated $2.8 million). Metro Sewer rates are proposed to increase 3 percent — the presentation estimated that equals roughly $10.88 per year for a single-family residence — to meet State Revolving Fund bond coverage requirements.
On staffing, the FY2027 packet shows a net increase of 3.30 full-time-equivalent positions and reiterates a proposed 3 percent COLA for employees plus the $60 monthly health-insurance contribution; the materials also describe a CMS wage-study adjustment for certain nonunion employees. The staffing table in the packet includes specific position additions, deletions and the estimated budget impact of those changes.
The council took no final budget action beyond referring the preliminary FY2027 budget to the Finance & Budget Committee for further review. That committee will examine the detailed packet, carryovers and grant reconciliations before any recommendation for adoption or amendment.
