Budget workshop flags sheriff contract increase, insurance spike and new $50,000 grant placeholder

A special budget workshop convened at 11:02 for a focused review of preliminary fiscal-year numbers. Participants confirmed a quorum and proceeded with staff-led line-by-line work on expenses while some revenue figures remain outstanding. The session was discussion-only; no formal votes were taken.

Staff reported a pending sheriff agreement that the group described as carrying a "2 and 12%" increase on the next contract and said that adjustment has already been reflected in draft line-item totals. Workshop participants emphasized that several large cost drivers remain uncertain until final revenue figures are available.

Members also discussed a recently awarded rehabilitation grant and recommended adding a $50,000 placeholder to the FY27 plan to reflect the expected award and anticipated contract spending. Staff asked to record the grant in the appropriate contractual-services account so the funds and related expenditures will be visible in next year’s budget.

Insurance costs were called out as another immediate pressure. An annual insurance audit produced an unanticipated bill and prompted discussion of higher premiums and increased deductibles. Staff recommended setting aside emergency reserve funds — the group referenced an $8,000 emergency allocation discussed during the session — and moving some low-value park buildings off the insured list as part of a broader self-insurance strategy.

The meeting also reviewed prior transfers and timing: members recapped a prior resolution that moved roughly $58,000 in general-fund transfers to cover items including a $50,000 payment related to the ambulance purchase; staff outlined the repayment schedule and the mechanics for reconciling those transfers in the upcoming budget process.

Workshop participants spent time reclassifying misallocated expenses (for example, moving tree-removal and park equipment bills into the correct accounts), and they agreed to begin setting aside funds for capital vehicle replacement rather than treating vehicle buys as one-time budget items. Staff noted state-contract prices for a replacement 3/4-ton truck range roughly from $54,000 to $65,000 and suggested an initial placeholder of $15,000 into a sinking or reserve account.

The workshop closed without formal action, with staff taking assignments to correct account coding, confirm grant contract terms, and return to the council with revised figures and revenue estimates for a later meeting.