County Budget
Annual Budget
Boulder County government assumes a variety of roles and carries out core responsibilities in order to help foster a vibrant, healthy, and active community.
Our annual budget process allows for the careful allocation of tax dollars to help with important county functions such as maintaining our well-traveled roads, conducting law and public safety services, providing housing counseling and nutrition assistance for our youngest and oldest residents, and working together to create visionary open space and land use policies.
Budget Process
Developing Boulder County’s annual budget is a process that starts in May each year and involves hundreds of hours of work from county staff, elected officials, and the community.
The 2026 Budget development and adoption process concluded on Dec. 9, 2025.
Adoption Resolutions are now available:
- View Resolution 2025-057 – Appropriating sums of money
- View Resolution 2025-058 – Summarizing expenditures and revenues
- View Resolution 2025-059 – Levying property taxes
The full 2026 Budget Book will be released in March.
View the adoption news release at Boulder County Adopts $745 Million Budget for 2026.
Future Meetings and Hearings
Public Hearings: Quarterly 2026 Budget Amendment Requests
- Quarter 1 amendments: Thursday April 9 (rescheduled from March 26)
- Quarter 2 amendments: Thursday June 25
- Quarter 3 amendments: Thursday Sept. 24
- Quarter 4 amendments: Thursday Jan. 14, 2027
Additional 2025 and 2026 Budget materials and presentations are available from the Past Meetings and Hearings section.
2027 Budget Process
No meetings or hearings are currently scheduled for the 2027 Budget Process, which is expected to begin in May 2026.
Both public meetings and hearings are available to attend in-person (3rd floor, 1325 Pearl St., Boulder), online through Zoom, or by phone.
Public hearings provide an opportunity for public comment. More details, including access to previous meeting videos and documentation, are available through the Public Meetings, Hearings, Records and Video Archives page.
Sign up for the Commissioners’ Advance Agenda to receive the most up to date two-week agenda, including final dates for all meetings and hearings.
Meeting dates are subject to change.
Past Meetings and Hearings
Public Meeting: 2026 Budget Adoption
- View the video of the Dec. 9 Budget Adoption Public Meeting.
- Visit Boulder County Adopts $745 Million Budget for 2026 for a summary of the 2026 adopted budget.
- View the adoption presentation document.
2026 Budget Work Session presentation
- View the video of the Nov. 6 Public Meeting for the 2026 Budget Worksession presentation.
- View the worksession presentation document.
Public Hearing on 2026 Boulder County Recommended Budget
Elected Official and Department Heads 2026 Budget presentations session 1:
- View the video of Session 1 on Tuesday, Oct. 7.
- View the presentation from Human Services for General Fund expenditure increases.
- View the presentation on Information Technology project requests..
- View the presentation on transportation infrastructure project requests from Community Planning & Permitting and Public Works..
- View the presentation by the Public Works Department on requests for county facilities and infrastructure, fleet replacements and additions, the Recycling Center, and road maintenance.
Elected Official and Department Heads 2026 Budget presentations session 2:
- View the video of Session 2 on Thursday, Oct. 9.
Recommended 2026 Budget
- View the video of the Sept. 30 Recommended 2026 Budget Presentation Public Meeting.
- View the 2026 Boulder County Budget Decision Package on OpenGov.
- View the Boulder County 2026 Recommended Budget presentation.
Starting in 2025, all Budget Amendments are being approved by the Board of County Commissioners on a quarterly basis.
Public Hearing: Proposed 2025 Off-Cycle Budget Amendment Requests
Public Hearings: Quarterly 2025 Budget Amendment Requests
- Q4: View the video for the Tuesday Feb. 3, 2026 Public Hearing on Proposed 2025 Quarter 4 Budget Amendment Requests.
- Q3: View the video for the Thursday Sept. 25, 2025 Public Hearing on Proposed 2025 Quarter 3 Budget Amendment Requests.
- Q2: View the video for the Tuesday July 8, 2025 Public Hearing on Proposed 2025 Quarter 2 Budget Amendment Requests.
- Q1: View the video for the Thursday Mar. 27, 2025 Public Hearing on Proposed 2025 Quarter 1 Budget Amendment Requests.
Revenue
Property Taxes
The Treasurer’s Office collects taxes for all taxing districts in the county, including Boulder County government, school districts, cities, fire districts, water and sanitation districts, and other special districts, and distributes the monies to those districts.
In 2025, taxing entities receiving portions of property tax revenues include:
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- School districts: 54%
- Boulder County Government: 24%
- Cities and Towns: 11%
- All others combined: 11%
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Sales and Use Taxes
Consult Boulder County’s Sales and Use taxes page for all details.
More Information
Interested in learning more about Financial Reporting for Boulder County? Visit our Financial Reporting page.
Current Documentation
All 2026 Budget documentation will be listed upon publication, during the first quarter of 2026.
Online Budget Book – Expenses by Fund
This interactive report provided through the OpenGov portal details expenses by fund up to and including the current Budget year.
Hover over any part of the graph to display contextual information for a slice.
Mill Levy and Property Tax
The 2026 Mill Levies were formally approved during the Budget Adoption public meeting of the Board of County Commissioners on Dec. 9, 2025: view the meeting section concerning the Resolution Levying Property Taxes.. Boulder County will levy 24.046 mills for fiscal year 2026, with a temporary mill levy credit of -0.932. This reflects a 5.5% growth limitation in the entirety of the county’s General Use fund, and most of the county voter-approved property tax funds.
More information about Property Tax will be provided in the 2026 Budget Summary. This document is scheduled for publication during the first quarter of 2026.
The Boulder County Treasurer’s Office calculates property tax using the mill levies from all taxing entities. Property tax notices are scheduled to be sent in January 2026. Find out more about how tax is calculated.
Previous Years’ Information
Budget Summaries
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- 2024 Budget Summary – OpenGov
- 2024 Boulder County Budget Summary – Printable PDF
- Resumen del presupuesto 2024 – PDF para imprimir
- 2023 Budget Summary
- 2022 Budget Summary
- 2021 Budget Summary
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Accessibility Notice
Boulder County aims to ensure all digital content and documents are accessible for the benefit of everyone’s use of our programs, activities and services. While efforts have been made to maximize accessibility, some types of content have inherent technical limitations.
To request an Americans with Disability (ADA) accommodation, please contact us no later than 2 business days before an event, through the following channels:
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- Submit an ADA Web Accommodation Request Form
- Email our ADA coordinator: ada@bouldercounty.gov
- Or call 303-441-1386
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View Boulder County’s accessibility statement.