It includes a small property tax increase for parks and recreation along with a 3% cost of living increase for county staff and elected officials.
One of the largest increases is the Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office’s budget. County Manager Dustin Grabau says it jumped by $2.2 million to fund nine additional staff positions.
“We actually asked the sheriff, when he originally proposed his budget request, to prioritize his recommendations,” Grabau said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” Tuesday. “So, these actually don't represent all of the things that he asked for. These are just the ones that we thought were the highest priority and ones that we could afford in the budget.”
Grabau says the 3% COLA bump is consistent with national trends.
“We feel like it is adequate,” he said. “We want to remain competitive but we also don't want to, you know, unnecessarily increase costs to taxpayers when we don't feel like we can justify it.”
The budget also allows for about $36 million in capital projects, including road improvements, construction of a new administration building and expansion of the county courthouse.
The Parks and Recreation department, a special service district, is seeking an additional $270,000 tax dollars for new staff and facility maintenance.
If approved, average households would pay about $4 more per year.
Residents can learn more at the Truth in Taxation public hearing Wednesday, Dec. 9, at 6 p.m. in Wasatch County Council Chambers.
