Yuma County budget proposal calls for stability, modest tax increase

Yuma County residents could see a 2.42-cent property-tax increase under a $535.6 million budget proposal built around no net new employees, a stronger reserve balance and what county leaders call long-term stability.

County Administrator Ian McGaughey presented the FY2026/27 recommended budget to the Yuma County Board of Supervisors on April 27 at the E.F. Sanguinetti Auditorium in Yuma. McGaughey said the county is trying to stay financially viable by keeping expenses low, protecting revenue strength and using a conservative approach to fiscal responsibility. Supervisor Jonathan Lines backed that message, saying departments have been pushed to do more with less and find creative ways to cover staffing gaps without automatically adding positions.

The proposal is the first budget shaped by the county’s new Five-Year Planning initiative. County officials say that framework ties department goals, risk management and long-term strategy together as the county decides where money should go and where it should not.

For households, the clearest change is the property-tax increase, which county officials say would partially restore an 8.76-cent General Fund reduction adopted in FY 2023/24. Even with the increase, the county says the levy would remain below the allowable limit for the 15th consecutive year. The recommended budget also includes a 3% pay-scale adjustment and a 3% performance-based increase meant to help recruit and retain employees.

County leaders say the money would support expanded IT and facilities management space, complete the sheriff’s office foothills substation and move forward on the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension Building. Total appropriations are projected to fall 3% from the current budget, signaling restraint even as the county directs dollars toward public safety, operations and capital needs.

The county projects a year-end General Fund balance of about 24.26% of total uses, above its 20% policy goal and including a $5 million recession contingency. That reserve level is meant to give the county a cushion if revenues soften or costs rise.

The proposal also marks a shift from last year’s adopted budget. Yuma County approved a $552 million budget in June 2025, also with no new positions and a 3% raise. This year’s plan is smaller, but county officials are presenting it as a continuation of the same discipline: steady reserves, restrained hiring and spending that tries to preserve services without pushing the tax base to its limit.

The board is scheduled to adopt the tentative budget on June 1 and the final budget on June 22, leaving residents with several weeks before the spending plan is locked in.