CHARLOTTE – The county’s Board of Commissioners adopted a $40.6 million general fund budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year on Wednesday evening, making $8.4 million worth of staff reductions and cuts to services.
The new budget eliminates the Sheriff’s Office road patrol for non-contracted areas like Delta Township and funding for MSU Extension, which provides the county’s 4-H programs. It also slashes funding to Clinton-Eaton-Ingham Community Mental Health and the Barry-Eaton District Health Department.
The cuts come after months of debate and line-by-line consideration of where commissioners could and should cut spending after voters twice in the last year rejected tax increases. The county had a projected $1.3 million financial shortfall in the 2024-25 budget, and the problem was expected to compound in the coming years…