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News Release

Larimer County Releases Proposed 2010 Budget

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Department: Board of County Commissioners
Release Date: Oct 15, 2009

Contact Information:

Frank Lancaster, County Manager, (970) 498-7004, flancaster@larimer.org
Bob Keister, Larimer County Budget Director, (970) 498-7017, keisterm@larimer.org
Deni La Rue, Community Information Manager, (970) 498-7150, dlarue@larimer.org

 

Larimer County’s Proposed 2009 Budget was released today by Larimer County Manager Frank Lancaster. Overall, the 2010 Proposed Budget of $ 290,036,247 is an 8.7 % reduction from the 2009 Revised Budget $317,838,672 and a 1.8% reduction from the 2009 original Adopted Budget of $295,415,498. Both the proposed and revised budgets were prepared in compliance with state statute, accepted budgeting principles, funding agency requirements, and the budget priorities and directions of the Board of County Commissioners.
 
Larimer County will not call on General Fund reserves for the Proposed 2010 Budget although several County special funds will use portions of their reserves to meet their 2010 budgets. Larimer County expects a more challenging revenue picture in 2011-2012 with lower property assessments projected so preserving General Fund reserves now is key. To prepare for lesser tax income in the future, the Board of County Commissioners has directed lower priority services to reduce their dependency on local property taxes by as much as 6%. High priority services were also directed to reduce, but not as significantly.  No increases in tax support are being proposed with the exception to the Road & Bridge service. It should be noted that services with increased user fee revenue, state or federal funding, were able to propose larger budget increases as long as the property share tax met the County Commissioners’ guidelines.
 
Copies of the 2010 Proposed Budget are available at the Larimer County Budget Office, 200 West Oak Street, Fort Collins, Colorado, and from Budget Director Bob Keister at 970-498-7017. Copies are also available at local public libraries and online at www.larimer.org/budget/2010budget/.
 
The Board of County Commissioners offers two public, televised hearings on the Proposed 2010 Budget:
 
November 16, 2009 - 6:30 P.M. (Televised and Live Viewer Call-in)
Larimer County Courthouse Office Building, Commissioners Hearing Room-1st Floor
200 West Oak Street, Fort Collins, Colorado
Televised on Fort Collins Cable Channel 14, LaPorte and Wellington Channel 45, Loveland & Berthoud Cable Channel 16. Viewers are able to call with their questions or comments by dialing 970-498-7016.
 
November 19, 2009 - 6:30 P.M. (Televised, Estes Park Channel 12)
Estes Park Municipal Building, Town Board Chambers Room
170 MacGregor Avenue, Estes Park, Colorado
 
Citizens can also make comments by e-mailing the County Commissioners at BOCC@larimer.org, or mail comments to the County Commissioners, PO Box 1190, Fort Collins, CO 80522.
 
Major objectives in preparing the Proposed 2010 Budget process were:
 
  1. The Commissioners set the "Price of County Government" by identifying the total discretionary funds available to finance the 2010 budget and set the proportions that would be available for the Key Results Areas: Public Safety; Transportation; Health and Well-Being; Jobs Creation and Economic Vitality; Environment and Natural Resources; General Governmental Services; and, Preparing for Growth.
 
  1. The Commissioners then prioritized funding for services-As guidance to the County Manager for preparing the 2010 budget, the Board reviewed all services, categorized and prioritized them with respect to receiving discretionary funding increases. Visit the Proposed 2010 Budget page at Larimer County, www.larimer.org/budget/2010budget/  to review the criteria used to evaluate.
 
  1. Following the prioritization of services, all services were then assigned funding limitations by the Commissioners, spanning a 6% decrease to 0% increase. Again the County’s Virtual Courthouse, www.larimer.org/budget/2010budget/, lists specific departmental budgets.  
 
The Commissioners also identified additional requirements that the budget must address:
  • The budget must maintain adequate fund balances in major operating funds.
  • The budget shall not commit Larimer County to providing programs or levels of service that cannot be reasonably sustained in light of projected resources.  
 
The budget shall be prepared incorporating the County objectives of:
  • Maintaining employee compensation at the 50th percentile goal.
  • Preventing inflation for eroding the purchasing power of operating budgets.
  • Providing for the reasonable and timely replacement of equipment and software.
 
Additional Documents available on the Larimer County Proposed 2010 Budget web site, www.larimer.org/budget/2010budget/, are:
 
  • Budget Overview in Brief
  • Highlights from the County Manager
  • Budget Highlights (28 pages)
  • Budget Detail (short, 138 pages)
  • Budget Detail (long, 243 pages)
  • Sources & Uses of Funds - Pie Charts
  • Property Tax Example
 
Proposed 2010 Adoption Hearing:
December 17, 2009 - 2:00 P.M.
Courthouse Offices Building
Commissioners' Hearing Room
200 West Oak Street
Fort Collins, CO 80521
 
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