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Missoula County previews preliminary FY2027 budget; final vote set for Sept. 3
Summary
County staff presented the expense-side preliminary FY2027 budget, citing $112.7 million in countywide appropriations, projected medical and personnel cost increases, and a target overall county increase near 3.25%; certified taxable values arrive the week of Aug. 3, and commissioners will set the final budget Sept. 3.
Chris Lounsbury, Missoula County''s chief administrative officer, presented the county''s preliminary fiscal year 2027 expense-side budget at the July 30 public hearing and said the presentation did not include certified revenue figures yet.
"When we look at the preliminary budget, we're really only looking at the expense side of the county's budget," Lounsbury said, noting certified taxable values are expected the week of Aug. 3. He told commissioners the county will present revenue numbers in a subsequent public meeting and will not publish tax bills until all taxing jurisdictions complete their calculations.
Lounsbury outlined drivers of the requested appropriations, including a 6% increase in medical costs for county employee health plans this year (after a 10% jump last year) and targeted personnel investments to improve recruitment and retention in the sheriff's office, detention facility, 9-1-1 dispatch and court services. He said countywide appropriations for fiscal 2027 are approximately $112,742,605, while certain county-only funds are decreasing largely because of last year''s one-time capital purchase of a gravel crusher.
On household impacts, Lounsbury provided staff projections: for a Missoula County homeowner with a $100,000 taxable-value benchmark, county-only increases would total about $3.14 per year and for the countywide piece about $5.23 per year; using the county''s cited average home sale price ($576,303), the combined county-only and countywide increase would be about $19.21 per year. He emphasized these figures are preliminary and depend on certified taxable values and other jurisdictions' levies.
The presentation also flagged a staff request for an additional county-only mill to support about $400,000 more for road materials if commissioners approve it. Lounsbury said any final appropriation decisions will follow public review of revenue figures and a formal hearing scheduled for Sept. 3 at 6 p.m.
