La Paz County Supervisors set April 30 worksession for budget presentations

La Paz County’s first real budget checkpoint for next year came into focus at 9 a.m. April 30, when supervisors gathered in Parker to hear department budget presentations for fiscal year 2026-27 at the Board of Supervisors Meeting Room, 1108 Joshua Avenue.

The worksession mattered because it was not just another meeting on the calendar. It was where county departments could lay out what they needed, and why, before the numbers hardened into the budget that will shape staffing, public safety, roads, court operations and other daily services across La Paz County. The county posted the agenda on April 22 and noted that meetings may be video recorded.

The Board of Supervisors holds final approval over county department budgets and tax rates, and it also appoints the directors of 16 county departments and approves all full-time county employees. That makes budget season one of the most consequential stretches of the year for residents who depend on county services and for departments trying to protect payroll, equipment and maintenance spending in a small county with limited room to absorb higher costs.

Even before final adoption, the county’s budget calendar showed how quickly these discussions can move. Under Arizona law, preliminary or tentative budget documents must be posted within seven business days after they are presented to supervisors. Final budget and tax levy documents must be posted within seven business days after adoption, and La Paz County says the deadline for final budget adoption is the third Monday in August.

The county’s financial picture helps explain the stakes. The Arizona Auditor General reported that La Paz County’s general fund improved from a deficit of about $4.0 million at the end of fiscal year 2021 to a positive $9.2 million at the end of fiscal year 2025. But the Jail District Fund still ended fiscal year 2025 with a deficit fund balance of $544,089, a reminder that not every part of county government has recovered at the same pace.

Auditors also warned that some of the improvement may be tied to temporary COVID-related and other federal and state funding, which means county leaders still have to manage carefully if they want to avoid service cuts, delayed projects or future tax and fee pressure. La Paz County has already posted official fiscal year 2026 budget forms based on Arizona Auditor General schedules, underscoring that the county is already deep into the next budget cycle.

The April 30 worksession marked the point where those numbers stopped being abstract. For La Paz County, the question now is not whether budget pressure exists, but which services can hold steady and which may come under strain before the final vote in August.