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Dawson County commissioners adopt amended $51.85 million FY2026 budget with public-safety increases
Summary
The Board of Commissioners approved a $51,853,415 General Fund FY2026 budget (All Funds $87,519,499), adding $444,549 for personnel and capital changes including funding for deputy pay increases and partial firefighter/paramedic staffing.
The Dawson County Board of Commissioners voted 4-0 on Nov. 20 to adopt an amended FY2026 budget that sets the General Fund at $51,853,415 and All Funds at $87,519,499, an increase of $444,549 from the prior proposed figures. Commissioner Chris Gaines presented a package of board-proposed changes that includes salary-grade adjustments, funding three of the six requested firefighter/paramedic positions, nearly $300,000 earmarked for a $2-per-hour pay increase for deputies and jail personnel, and postponing the creation of a 9-1-1/EMA director position.
Chairman Billy Thurmond reviewed newly received budget and personnel information and discussed why several items were not in the initial proposal. Tim Satterfield, a 41-year fire service veteran, told the board during the public hearing, “We’ve got to get out of the 1970s and 1980s,” urging the county to prioritize staffing because “somebody’s going die” if crews are insufficient. The budget packet attached as Exhibit A to the minutes lists specific line adjustments, including a $104,000 night-shift differential for the Sheriff’s Office, a $35,000 increase for the inmate medical contract, and proposed funding of three paramedic positions totaling $321,462.
The board’s motion to adopt the budget passed 4-0 (Gaines/Turkett). Documents in the minutes show net changes and line-item summaries; the board moved forward with the approved totals and directed staff to proceed with the adopted appropriations.
