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County Clerk outlines Park County’s proposed FY27 budget; commissioners close public hearing, set approval for next day
Summary
The county clerk presented the Park County Board of Commissioners’ proposed fiscal year 2027 budget, detailing reserves, use of ARPA funds, a planned solid-waste rate increase and a modest employee cost-of-living add-on. Commissioners closed the public hearing with no public comments and scheduled final approval for 9:30 a.m. the following day.
Chairman Stewart called a special meeting Feb. 26 to receive the Park County fiscal year 2027 budget message and invited the county clerk to present.
The county clerk said the board’s principal objective is “to ensure that expenditures do not exceed projected revenues.” She outlined key figures and planned changes in the proposed budget, including a reported general-fund request figure (spoken as $37,000,306), general reserves of $14,717,177, and a plan to use a net $5,556,632 in cash carryover to balance the FY27 budget. The clerk said Park County receives $3,468,825 in payments in lieu of taxes (PILT) for federal land and noted that $2,433,946 of reserves are mineral property tax revenues.
In the presentation the clerk said property taxes were “reduced by 25%” and that qualifying taxpayers received “up to 50% reductions.” She reported a 7.2% increase in the county’s self‑funded health‑insurance premiums and cited a figure of about $9,191,291 for related costs. The clerk also described retirement and contribution changes, saying the county pays 18.12% into the public retirement system and that, beginning July 1, 2026, public employees would pay 1%; she also reported increased law‑enforcement contribution rates with an employee share noted in the presentation.
The clerk identified planned uses of federal American Rescue Plan Act funds, saying they were used to repair county sewer lagoons and transfer ownership and management to the City of Cody with project completion listed as Aug. 31, 2026; she said part of ARPA paid for courthouse HVAC work and that remaining ARPA would fund law‑enforcement HVAC. She also provided enterprise fund figures and projections, saying the landfill fund balance was $1,988,981 and that FY26–27 revenues and expenses were projected at about $2,689,405 and $2,573,222, respectively.
On personnel costs the clerk said the board approved a 50¢ cost‑of‑living addition for employees plus a two‑step increase to be used at department heads’ discretion, estimating an additional $415,000 in wages. A member of the board asked whether the increase was “50¢ or 50%,” and the clerk clarified, “50¢ cost of living.” The clerk also said the municipal solid‑waste disposal base rate will increase from $70 to $80 per ton in July 2026.
Chairman Stewart opened the public hearing for comment and no members of the public came forward. A committee member moved to close the public hearing; the County Clerk seconded the motion and the board approved it by voice vote. The clerk told the board that the next procedural step is to meet the following morning to amend an item noted in the clerk’s remarks and then accept approval of the budget at 9:30 a.m.
Before adjourning, members thanked staff and the clerk for preparing the budget materials and reminded attendees the full budget documents are posted on the Park County website for review. The County Clerk moved to adjourn, Chairman Stewart seconded, and the board approved the motion by voice vote.
