This briefing provides an update to the Board of Health on the Health Department's 2025-2026 biennial budget as adopted by the Snohomish County Council. The Snohomish County Council adopted the 2025-2026 biennial budget on November 25, 2024, at a special meeting for the public hearing on the adoption of the budget. The Health Department's adopted 2025-2026 budget includes aggregated total operating expenditure/appropriation of just over $71.7M for 2025 and 2026.

The 2025-2026 adopted budget includes the following key priorities:

• Data and informatics
• Address health inequities
• Environmental Health division data system
• Savvy Septic sustainability
• STI clinic
• Vaccine accessibility
• Opioid overdose

A correction is required to the number of regular and project, full time equivalent (FTE) positions included in the Department’s executive recommended budget, as stated in staff report and presentation slides presented at the briefing to the Board of Health at the meeting held on September 10, 2024. The number should have been stated as 195.05 FTEs for 2025 and 193.05 FTEs for 2026.  The adopted regular and project staffing positions now stand at 196.05 FTEs for 2025 and 194.05 FTEs for 2026 after 1.0 FTE was added by Council at the adoption of the budget. Per the minutes of the Board of Health meeting held on October 8, 2024, it was mentioned in a briefing that County Council will add one FTE in relation to food establishments permitting when approving the budget. At the November 25, 2024, budget hearing, the amended budget adoption ordinance 24-083 was passed and included the addition of 1.0 FTE for an Environmental Health Specialist III with a year 1 cost of $109,421 and year 2 cost of $112,872, to be funded by additional draw on fund balance. The overall decrease from 2024 staffing levels and between 2025 and 2026 is attributed to project roles ending through the biennium and associated grant funding expiring during that time.

We are grateful for the additional funds that benefit our work as part of the County budgeting process. These funds, which include sources such as Chemical Dependency & Mental Health (CD/MH) sales tax, opioid settlement, Savvy Septic funding from Surface Water Management (SWM), and the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), have allowed us to implement key services and impact our reach. We thank the County for supporting additional, one-time contributions of $850K which includes $450K additional County Per Capita funding in 2025 and $400K towards the Savvy Septic program. Additionally, the County’s Per Capital contribution will increase annually at a growth rate of 3.5% after 2026.

The Health Department’s 2025-2026 adopted appropriation is supported by the funding sources sheet (Exhibit A).

Currently, we are monitoring the activities at the federal and state levels. The current federal funding continuing resolution is set to expire on March 14, 2025, and Congress will need to pass full year, fiscal year 2025 appropriations. The Washington State budget process for state fiscal biennium, 2025-2027 is in progress with the transition from Governor Inslee to Governor Ferguson. The WA state Department of Health (DOH) are working closely with the Governor’s office in anticipation of Governor Ferguson’s budget priorities and inclusion/exclusion of public health related budget packages and other legislative priorities occurring concurrent to the budget process that may impact the approved appropriation for the state fiscal biennial budget 2025-2027. Local health jurisdictions receive appropriated funded from DOH via the consolidated contract (ConCon).

After adoption of the budget, Health Department staff, leadership and the Department’s Finance Office will work closely to monitor budget performance. In year one, 2025 the next focus in the biennial budget process will be on the mid-biennium review. The 2027-2028 biennial budget process will start preparations in 2026.