Summit County’s draft FY2026 budget is nearly $100 million — an all-time high.
The Summit County Council has until December to vote on it, but discussions begin this week. Summit County Manager Shayne Scott's job is to propose the budget annually.
“This year is an opportunity for us to really catch up,” Scott said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” Oct. 14. “We've asked staff over the last two years to hold off on some full time employees, for example.”
Scott has proposed a property tax increase the past two years running, but county councilmembers decided not to go that route. This year, he is not recommending a tax increase.
That’s because there’s more money to go around since voters approved a 0.5% sales tax last November. County staff project it to bring in an additional $16.5 million annually.
Those funds are earmarked, by law, for emergency services and waste management. But it also frees up money for other purposes.
County departments requested 16 new employees; the proposed budget has room for eight.
Scott has also been overseeing a process to plan future facility renovations and building needs.
“And this budget is a reflection of that,” he said. “We have a lot of needs at the [Coalville] courthouse that we're going to hit in the next couple of years… We're doing a lot in the Skullcandy building next year. We're preparing that first floor for library space, council dais, DMV.”
The Skullcandy building, now vacated by the company that gave it its name, will replace the Sheldon Richins Building at Kimball Junction. Scott expects staff could move into the facility next spring.
The courthouse in Coalville slated for a remodel is Summit County’s flagship building in the county seat.
Following the initial presentation of the budget Wednesday, Oct. 15, the county council will have weekly focused discussions about different areas of the budget through November.
There will be a public hearing in the Snyderville Basin Dec. 3 before another hearing and scheduled vote in Coalville Dec. 10.
Click here to review the staff report with Scott's budget presentation.
Summit County is a financial supporter of KPCW.
