Missoula County Fiscal Year 2026 Budget

Each year, the Missoula County commissioners and county staff work together to create an annual budget to fund county services and operations. The budget follows the fiscal year, which runs from July 1 to June 30 of the following year. The fiscal year 2026 budget will cover July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026.

Base Budget

The County's budget process begins by establishing the base budget required to maintain current services and operations. This includes projected increases in staff salaries and healthcare costs, department operations, capital projects like building renovations and improvements, material costs such as asphalt for the road department and more.

Budget Requests

In addition to the base budget, the commissioners consider new requests from departments aimed at improving services and operations. One-time requests must be funded with savings from previous fiscal years so they do not impact future property tax bills. Ongoing requests require a sustained source of revenue and may be funded through options like a property tax increase, grant funding or fees.

Missoula County staff will present new budget requests that require additional property tax revenue to the commissioners' at public administrative meetings throughout June, beginning Tuesday, June 3. These meetings typically take place at 10 a.m. on most Tuesdays and Thursdays. Agendas and details on how to attend are available at missoula.co/bccmeetings. These meetings will be recorded and posted to the County YouTube page.

Budget Hearings

Preliminary Budget Hearing:
After reviewing all budget requests, staff will present the preliminary budget to the commissioners at a public meeting at 2 p.m. on Thursday, July 24. This meeting provides another opportunity for the public to offer comments. The agenda and attendance information will be posted at missoula.co/bccmeetings.

Final Budget Hearing:
Following receipt of certified mill values from the Montana Department of Revenue and consideration of public input, the commissioners will hold the final budget hearing at 2 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 4, where they will vote to adopt the final FY 2026 budget. Public comment will also be accepted during this hearing. Details will be available at missoula.co/bccmeetings.

We invite you to ask any questions you may have and follow this project page to stay informed about future engagement opportunities related to the budget.