The Johnson County Board of Supervisors discussed budget concerns for fiscal year 2027, which begins on July 1, 2026, and goes until June 30, 2027. The board recognized the financial uncertainty due to the upcoming legislative session which could determine where money will be allocated, that will occur after budgets are due and potential upcoming cuts.
Supervisor V Fixmer-Oraiz began the conversation by acknowledging that the budget committee was still working through decisions and would be waiting until the end of the calendar year to finalize budget documents.
Supervisor Rod Sullivan acknowledged the concerns about what the upcoming year will look like financially and where money will be allocated. Sullivan said the county has just under $50 million in salaries for county employees, which could significantly impact potential pay increases.
Sullivan said he was dedicated to not laying employees off, but that it would mean finding other places to not spend money.
“We have incredible department heads and elected officials, and they’ll work with us to come up with the best solutions,” he said.
Josh Busard, director of planning, development, and sustainability for the county, spoke on behalf of his staff at the meeting, and asked that the board give direction to department heads on nonessential services to cut.
“It’s a hard decision. I don’t envy the position that the four of you are in,” he said. “But I think it would go a long way if we had that direction to help give us the clarity to think about other cuts that we could.”
Fixmer-Oraiz said the board wanted to encourage department heads to focus on what they thought was least essential, and asked to hear any creative solutions anyone had.
“You’re the department heads. It’s your department,” Fixmer Oraiz said. “We don’t want to come in and start having to cut things.”
Danielle Pettit-Majewski, director of Johnson County Public Health, said the department heads were thinking about cuts and preparing their departments for the future.
Pettit-Majewski said she would rather focus on looking at the budget as a whole, and said she wanted to prioritize working together to find solutions.
“When I do my decision, I have absolutely no idea how that is used in a piece with my colleagues’ decision packets,” she said.“I would rather that we sat in a room and said, What can we do… to best serve our community.”
Fixmer-Oraiz thanked the speakers for their ideas and said that the board would continue the conversation on how best to move forward.
“I appreciate just getting together and look forward to seeing what you all come up with,” Fixmer-Oraiz said.