The Summit County Council is considering a $100 million budget to fund county operations in 2026, an 11% increase compared to this year’s budget.
Despite the $10 million difference, though, residents won’t need to worry about a property tax increase.
Summit County Manager Shayne Scott presented the proposed budget to the County Council on Wednesday, providing a brief overview of what to expect as he and Summit County Finance Manager Matt Leavitt start to walk councilors through specifics over the next two months.
Scott explained the increase — $100 million in 2026 compared to $90.8 million in 2025 — largely stems from voters’ decision to pass the emergency services sales tax in November. The 0.5% sales tax, which went into effect in July, was the county’s solution to increase funding for emergency services while freeing up money in the general fund.
The county has already earned around $6.5 million from the tax in the last four months, and Scott predicted it would generate $16.5 million in 2026.
He said the additional $10 million in the budget is also the result of the county’s decision last year to ask departments to delay major funding requests if possible due to the uncertainty of whether the emergency services sales tax would pass. Essentially, Scott said that the county is hoping to grant more funding next year because of how many denials there were in 2025.
Overall, the county expects to earn approximately $36.2 million through property taxes, $18 million through sales taxes, $16.5 million through the emergency services sales tax, $4 million through licensing and permitting, $13.9 million through grants and intergovernmental revenue, $8.2 million through fees and services and $5 million from other sources.
Scott did not share many details on where, specifically, the additional $10 million will be spent. However, he said some of the money will go toward the Sheriff’s Office, Lands and Natural Resources and the Health Department to make up for the loss of federal grant dollars. He also mentioned the cost of consulting outside attorneys and general public works and infrastructure projects.
One of those projects includes remodeling the County Courthouse in Coalville, but Scott said the current plan is to piecemeal renovation efforts over the next few years to make the process more economically viable and lessen the disruption construction will have on county employees and residents.
The budget also outlines a 2.7% cost of living increase for employees, as well as 3% merit increases.
Scott said there were a handful of requested items that were ultimately omitted from the budget, including eight new full-time positions, property tax increases and funding for the Park City Senior Services building.
The Summit County Council will receive more detailed information on the proposed budget every Wednesday until mid-December, with Scott and Leavitt focusing on different departments each time and explaining the county’s rationale in depth. The next meeting on Oct. 22 is slated for a discussion on revenue and tax projections, as well as an overview of fund balances.
A public hearing on the budget in the Snyderville Basin is tentatively scheduled for Dec. 3. A public hearing in Coalville is scheduled for Dec. 10, with the County Council expected to adopt the budget later the same day.