The Flathead County commissioners will hold a public hearing Wednesday to take comments on a proposed $57.6-million annual budget.

The spending plan includes $6.7 million in general-fund expenditures. It covers fiscal year 2005-06, which began July 1.

Local governments in Montana typically have to approve their annual budgets after the fiscal year begins because they're waiting on taxable value information from the state Department of Revenue.

This year's proposed budget is up about 4 percent from last year.

To pay for these expenditures, county officials are recommending a property-tax levy of 133.79 mills, an increase of 5.4 mills, or 4.2 percent, from the year before.

However, each mill is also worth 6-percent more this year than last year, because of higher taxable values.

Consequently, the proposed mill levy would raise $21.2 million in property-tax revenue, an increase of $2 million, or 10.8 percent, over the previous year.

The proposed levy includes 4.6 voter-approved mills for Eagle Transit, emergency medical services, and search and rescue, plus a permissive health levy of 3.62 mills to pay for higher health-insurance costs.

All together, local property taxes would pay for 37 percent of the proposed budget.

If the commissioners approve this levy, county taxpayers would pay about $30.34 in property taxes for every $10,000 in home market value - $303.40 for a $100,000 home - an increase over last year of about $1.23 per $10,000.

Copies of the proposed budget are available for public inspection at the Clerk and Recorder's Office.

The commissioners discussed the proposed budget during a four-hour work session Monday. They made a handful of minor changes, including cutting some proposed capital outlays and holding off on filling an open position for the county extension agent, who resigned recently.

Together, these changes would reduce the proposed levy by one or two mills.

The public's only formal opportunity to comment on the budget comes at Wednesday's hearing, which is scheduled at 9 a.m. in the Justice Center Community Room.

The commissioners will then hold a second work session to discuss any necessary changes; they're scheduled to approve the final budget and mill levy by Sept. 14.

Reporter Bill Spence may be reached at 758-4459 or by e-mail at [email protected].