Eagle County ready to pass 2025 budget, set to spend $280.7 million

After months of work, Eagle County’s 2025 budget is ready. The Eagle County Board of Commissioners on Dec. 5 got their last look at the document before an expected vote on Thursday, Dec. 12

The budget is a long document, accounting for more than $280.7 million across all the county’s numerous funds. The county is also anticipating spending roughly $48.7 million more than it expects to take in for 2025, with most of that money coming from reserve funds.

The 2025 spending will include about $44 million in spending on strategic goals, including workforce support, creating a resilient economy and protecting the mountain ecosystem.

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According to the report from county Chief Financial Officer Jill Klosterman and Finance Director Anna Earl, the biggest portion of county spending, 29%, or $80.4 million, is dedicated to salaries and benefits. County employees will see a 7% increase in their pay and benefit packages for 2025, due in part to an increase in the cost of health insurance.

But county revenues are expected to remain relatively flat through 2025. Sales tax collections in 2025 are estimated to rise 2.5%. Klosterman noted that property taxes, which account for 18% of the county’s revenue, are expected to remain flat, at roughly $42 million in 2025.

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The finance team also presented the commissioners with plans in case revenues don’t meet estimates. Those plans include not filling staff vacancies, deferring capital programs and other money-saving measures.

Among those capital improvements are a pair of projects that rely on grant funding, including a $9.6 million project to replace the heating and cooling system in the county administration building with a geothermal system. Other capital improvements include an ice surface at the county fairgrounds event center.

Finishing the Eagle Valley Trail’s last 7.5 miles, always seen as the most complex part of the project, has been budgeted at $15 million.

While the $5.5 million budget item for the now-canceled West Eagle project has been pulled from the 2025 budget, Klosterman said those funds will be dedicated to other regional housing partnerships.

Even with the cancellation of the West Eagle project, the county is still on track to add roughly 300 new housing units to the county’s inventory.

And, while the county is spending from its reserve funds to balance the 2025 budget, there’s a lot of money in the bank.

Across all funds, the county has more than $223.7 million on its reserve funds. Klosterman noted that county policy requires keeping roughly 25% of operating expenses on hand. That isn’t the case in all funds, but some funds have more while others have somewhat less. For instance, the solid waste fund is expected to have 384% percent of its annual operating expenses on hand at the end of 2025, while the public health fund is anticipated to have 19% of its operating expenses in the bank at the end of next year.

Commissioner Jeanne McQueeney thanked the finance team for their work on the budget, saying, “You’ve found a way to describe every fund … The bottom line is we have a very balanced budget.”