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Pine County staff present mid-year budget preview and department-level proposals
Summary
County staff presented a four-chart 2027 budget preview highlighting revenues and expenditures below 50% for major funds year-to-date, department variances versus five-year averages, and detailed department proposals including auditor/treasurer, planning and solid-waste funds and a plan to partially fund an economic development coordinator.
County Administrator Kelly Schroeder and Auditor-Treasurer Mary Lindala presented a mid-year preview of the proposed 2027 budget, walking commissioners through revenue and expenditure charts and department-level proposals.
Schroeder said major funds are below 50% year-to-date in revenues and expenditures, which she did not view as concerning because a large portion of state aid typically arrives in the third quarter. Lindala highlighted auditor fees, election year costs and land-fund timber revenue shifts. The administrator noted inspector and IT contract timing drove some departments above typical spending trends.
Staff also discussed a proposal to fund the county's economic development coordinator (Leslie) in part from Bridal contribution ($50,000), grants ($~10,200 anticipated reimbursements) and $50,000 from a local-assistance COVID-era fund, with the county levy covering the balance (roughly $39,000). Schroeder said the AIS (aquatic invasive species) state funding will be cut roughly in half in 2027, reducing funds for watercraft inspectors and grants to lake associations.
Commissioners asked about liabilities from forfeited properties, solid-waste costs and whether inspection duties linked to SSTS changes would require additional staff. Schroeder said some savings and vacant positions have helped reduce an earlier projected deficit in the general fund, but that the county lacks ARPA transfers available to plug the full gap in 2027.
