Editor’s note: This story has been updated to include additional details about how the surplus is being managed by the county.

Grand County achieved a $16.4 million surplus in the 2025 calendar year, with $77.4 million in total revenue and $61 million in functional costs, according to a recent audit. The findings were presented by Jim Hinkle of Hinkle & Company PC at the June 23 Board of County Commissioners meeting.

Much of this surplus is earmarked to pay for special projects such as the new EMS station, said Grand County Finance Director, Alina Bell.

According to Hinkle, “based upon our analysis and all of our testing, we did not find any significant deficiencies or material weaknesses in the internal control structure.” Hinkle continued, saying, “All in all, from an audit perspective, it’s a clean audit.”

“We, as the auditors, felt like we had open transparency. Everything that we asked for was provided in a timely fashion, and we were never denied access to any source documents or any other information,” Hinkle said.

According to Hinkle, the general fund, which helps fund affordable housing, retirement, water quality and employee health insurance activities, accrued $36.8 million in revenue while spending about $33.2 million, creating a surplus of about $3.6 million.

Transfers to the capital fund and other “non-major funds” leave “a net change in fund balance” of $807,000, said Bell.

Current unrestricted cash balances for the county total $30.2 million, translating to about 11 months of cash on hand in case of emergencies such as wildfires or other circumstances that could significantly affect revenues.

According to the report, the largest sources of total revenue for the county are property taxes (32%), operating grants and contributions that directly support streets and highways and public health, welfare and safety functions (25%), county sales tax (16%) and charges for services such as emergency medical and ambulance services, building permit fees and fueling services (12%).

Another 15% in revenue comes from sources including lodging and specific ownership, investment earning, fees for licenses and permit and other miscellaneous revenues, said Bell.

Sales tax revenue in the 2025 calendar year was the highest Grand County has experienced, driven by rising prices and increased online sales transactions. Lodging tax revenue reached $2.3 million in 2025, a 10% increase compared with 2024, driven by the passage of Ballot Initiative 1A in November 2024.

General government activities accounted for 32% of all costs incurred during the 2025 calendar year, followed by public safety at 29% of spending, streets and highways at 16% and auxiliary services — including airports, the Department of Natural Resources, Grand County Housing Authority, veterans services and preservation of open lands, rivers and trails — accounting for another 12%.

The current economic outlook outlined in the report emphasizes growing costs due to persistent inflationary pressures and increased demand for modern infrastructure. Rising costs across personnel, operations and facility maintenance remain a priority, according to the report.

The report also identifies local road construction and paving as an increasing expenditure as Grand County continues implementing its asphalt paving and maintenance plan. Extended periods of extreme and exceptional drought have also presented operational challenges for the Road and Bridge Department in maintaining unpaved road networks — something that could significantly increase costs in the future if conditions persist.

Continued drought conditions also increase the risk of another catastrophic wildfire, which could cost more than $500,000 per incident, according to Bell. The county is addressing those risks by building its fund balance, increasing emergency preparedness team capacity, participating in the Colorado Emergency Fire Fund and implementing actions from the recently adopted Community Wildfire Protection Plan.

“The county has had a number of years of financial discipline,” Hinkle concluded.