FAIRMONT– County Engineer Kevin Peyman put in a 2026 preliminary budget request on Tuesday during the Marin County Board of Commissioners meeting. Peyman said at a 7.4 percent levy increase, it’s possibly the largest he’s ever started with and that it’s due to a combination of factors.

Peyman noted at the recent special session some budget bills were settled and that a percentage of sales tax on parts that goes into the highway users tax distribution fund is going to be decreased over a 10 year time period.

“I think next year they’re hoping we will stay level at least and then the following year there could be an 8 percent drop in the user fund,” Peyman said.

Also with that he said there is $20 million in bridge bonding but he’s unsure if there are some earmarked projects.

“There is a chance there will be some bridge bonding money for some of the projects on the list. Twenty million dollars statewide, our size bridges are $1 million a bridge on average. It won’t go a long ways but there’s a chance for something,” Peyman said.

He said there’s also roughly $20 million for local road projects but noted that’s more of a competitive process in securing funds.

When it comes to his budget, Peyman said he starts with the assumption it will be the same year over year. He also assumes the level of service will be the same, assuming there is satisfaction with it.

“On the construction side of things, Peyman said there’s an offset of revenue and expenditures depending on if it’s a big or small construction year. For 2026, he said they are looking at a bigger construction year with $8 million in maintenance and $9 million in construction.

He said 2025 was a smaller construction year with $14 million total, compared to the projected $17 million in 2026.

Therefore, Peyman said he was looking at a 7.4 percent levy increase of $202,000.

Also going into consideration are things like payroll. Peyman said there are about 27 staff and payroll totals about $2.1 million but that last year it was $1.98 so they’re looking at an increase of $146,000, plus some increases in healthcare contributions.

“I did try to be very tight with things like equipment because the payroll is a very important part of the budget to me,” Peyman said.

Another thing that impacts the budget is the state aid maintenance revenue. Peyman said he’s planning on just a $10,000 increase but said they won’t know for sure until January. In the event that there’s a larger amount, like $50,000, the board could opt to decrease the levy.

He spoke briefly of some equipment and construction details. Peyman said the park levy has not changed and that it’s had a levy of $65,00 for many years.

“The parks function pretty well for that small amount of tax payer money,” he said.

The board accepted the budget request and will revisit it at a later date.

Also on Tuesday, the board approved an amendment to a project agreement between Pictometry International Corp., Minnesota Counties Computer Cooperative and Martin County. The agreement pertains to a continuation project to conduct a flyover of the county to update the Beacon System in order to keep it accurate and current.

While discussing Beacon, which provides online access to maps, real estate data, tax information and appraisal data, the board began talking about security. Pam Flitter, the Planning and Zoning Technician, said she had conversations about it with the former County Assessor, Mike Sheplee.

“The availabilities people have to find you is one of the items I have had some concern with,” Flitter said.

County Commissioner Billeye Rabbe noted that Faribault County doesn’t allow someone to search by name, just address or parcel ID. It was suggested that that might be a good idea for Martin County.

“Especially with what happened last week,” said Commissioner Kevin Kristenson, referencing the murder of a Minnesota lawmaker and her husband.

Flitter suggested they check in to see what some other counties do.

“It’s a very handy tool for us, but it’s also very iffy in the wrong hands,” Koons said.

The board passed a motion to mask the information of state lawmakers upon request.

Later in the meeting the board approved the resignation of a part-time correctional officer and discussed whether it wanted to hire a replacement.

It was asked how many shifts a part-time worker is required to work and Human Resources Director Leigha Johnson said that the previous board asked that they work a minimum of two to three shifts a month but that it hasn’t been enforced.

Johnson said there are currently four other part-time correctional officers that mostly fill in when regular staffers are sick or using PTO. Commissioner Billeye Rabbe asked whether this one needed to be replaced.

“I think it’s probably more the purview of the sheriff how to staff that and it’s our job how to fund it,” Commissioner Jaime Bleess said.

Rabbe pointed that onboarding any staff member requires an expense to the county. She said she’s been looking at bills from the sheriff’s department and that there are continuous bills for uniforms and staffing certain roles.

She made a motion to deny the recruitment. The motion passed with the understanding that the board will discuss it again at a later date if needed.

In other business, the board:

— Recognized the retirement of Julie Walters from her position in the County Coordinator’s office after 20 years and three months of service.

— Heard an update on the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) and received its budget allocation request in the amount of $4,250.

— Heard an update from County Recorder, Michelle Duncan, who shared that a legislative change will affect her office as the full marriage license will increase by $10 from $115 to $125 and the reduced license will increase $10 from $40 to $50.

— Received a budget allocation request from Small Business Development Center (SBDC) in the amount of $2,000.

— Approved a tax abatement request from David and Annette Sult for construction of a single-family home in Granada.