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Commissioners weigh 2% COLA, fund‑balance drawdown as jail and medical costs swell
Summary
Potter County commissioners held an extended budget workshop Aug. 12, reviewing a proposed 2% cost‑of‑living adjustment for county staff while staff and commissioners debated spending down fund balance to cover capital repairs, detention medical contracts and rising operating costs.
Potter County’s commissioners spent most of their Aug. 12 meeting on a line‑by‑line budget review that paired a proposed 2% cost‑of‑living increase for employees with recommendations to draw modestly on the county’s accumulated fund balance.
Brandon (county auditor) told the court his projection expects the county to carry roughly $39.5 million in fund balance at fiscal year end and said it would be “prudent” to spend down some of that reserve rather than raise the maintenance and operations tax rate. He recommended structuring salaries around a 2% COLA while using one‑time fund‑balance dollars for selected capital needs.
Why it mattered: Commissioners repeatedly flagged mounting costs tied to the detention center — medical services, contract housing and overtime — as the largest drivers of new spending pressure. Sheriff (present at the meeting) and other officials told the court that inmate medical and outside housing contracts have risen sharply; staff estimated the combined medical and contract housing exposure in next year’s budget could reach into the low‑seven figures if current usage continues.
Commissioners discussed several options: approving the auditor’s approach (keep M&O largely unchanged while drawing some fund balance), pursuing a no‑new‑revenue tax rate, or using one‑time reserves to buy down near‑term capital requests (fleet replacements, facility repairs and radio upgrades). Several commissioners said they supported leaving the COLA at 2% for now while giving staff time to model the dollar‑amount alternative (a flat per‑employee payment) before the Aug. 26 deadline to finalize the proposed rate.
The court recessed the discussion with plans to reconvene; Brandon will return with updated simulations showing the budgetary effect of a flat payment versus a percentage COLA and the impact of moving two CAD‑funded positions back into the general fund staffing rolls.
