Overview
Republic County adopted a 2026 budget with total authority of $16,984,232 and a 2025 ad valorem tax of $8,510,021, at a revenue neutral rate of 86.723 mills that the county voted to exceed. The General Fund authority is $3,499,431, Road & Bridge $3,708,500 and Employee Benefits $2,976,500 — the three largest funds. The General Fund's single largest 2026 receipt is a $600,000 windfarm contribution, ahead of the $500,000 local retail sales tax.
Source: Republic County adopted budget FY2026 (state admin portal, PDF).
At a glance
Budget walk
General Fund: January 1 cash $720,603 plus receipts excluding ad valorem tax $1,278,221 plus tax required $1,500,607 equals the $3,499,431 authority. Delinquent compensation is 2.5%, or $37,515, giving the 2025 ad valorem tax of $1,538,122.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Unencumbered cash, Jan 1, 2026 | $720,603 |
| Receipts excluding ad valorem tax (printed) | $1,278,221 |
| Tax required | $1,500,607 |
| Total General Fund authority | $3,499,431 |
General Fund departments, 2026 (the detail sums exactly to $3,499,431): Sheriff $799,400; Appropriations and other general government $492,348; Courthouse General $432,870; Communications $431,102; Jail $292,200; County Attorney / Counselor $160,450; County Treasurer $146,000; Election $137,600; Register of Deeds $130,577; County Clerk $118,200; Custodian $109,030; Unified Court $105,070; Emergency Management $80,084; County Commission $64,500.
General Fund receipts detail, 2026, as extracted: windfarm contribution $600,000; local retail sales tax $500,000; interest on idle funds $200,000; motor vehicle tax $55,037; dispatch services $50,672; officer's fees $48,000; gross earnings (intangible) tax $30,748; transfer from Motor Vehicle Operating Fund $20,000; 16/20M vehicle tax $16,732; reimbursements $10,000; emergency management $8,000; interest and charges on delinquent tax $7,000; delinquent tax $4,500; commercial vehicle tax $3,114; diversion fees $2,000; tower and other rents $1,200; local alcoholic liquor $1,200; recreational vehicle tax $1,062; antique motor vehicle registration $1,000; inmate phone commission $1,000; watercraft tax $737; miscellaneous $0; less neighborhood revitalization rebate $(23,781). These lines sum to $1,538,221 — exactly $260,000 above the printed $1,278,221, so one extracted line (or column) is overstated by $260,000. The printed total and the reconciling walk are reported; the gap is disclosed in Sources & notes and the detail sum is never presented as the total.
Source: Republic County adopted budget FY2026, General Fund pages.
Major funds
Fund authorities for 2026, with 2025 ad valorem tax where levied. The Bond & Interest authority was blank in the certificate extraction and is not claimed.
| Fund | 2026 authority |
|---|---|
| Road & Bridge | $3,708,500 |
| General | $3,499,431 |
| Employee Benefits | $2,976,500 |
| Hospital Sales Tax | $1,250,000 |
| Ambulance | $953,270 |
| Special Bridge | $899,894 |
| Solid Waste | $743,755 |
| Health | $654,700 |
| Hospital Maintenance | $588,725 |
| Fuel Center | $487,292 |
| County Building | $312,776 |
| Appraiser's Cost | $282,616 |
| Special Ambulance Equipment | $188,647 |
| Transportation | $133,848 |
| Noxious Weed | $124,956 |
| Republic County 911 | $114,221 |
| Opioid Program | $33,228 |
| Special Parks & Recreation | $19,890 |
| Special Alcohol & Drug | $11,983 |
2025 ad valorem tax by fund: Employee Benefits $2,759,897; Road & Bridge $2,261,026; General $1,538,122; Hospital Maintenance $566,073; Ambulance $539,581; Appraiser's Cost $254,423; Special Bridge $188,744; Health $180,234; County Building $94,368; Noxious Weed $87,237; Transportation $40,316; total $8,510,021 as printed in the certificate.
Sources & notes
- Only source used: Republic County adopted budget FY2026 (state admin portal; certificate states the budget was duly approved and adopted as maximum expenditure for 2026; assisted by Lindburg Vogel Pierce Faris, Chartered, Hutchinson, KS). Read the budget (PDF).
- Sum checks: the General Fund walk ($720,603 + $1,278,221 + $1,500,607) equals $3,499,431; the General Fund department detail sums exactly to $3,499,431. Verified by addition.
- Discrepancies disclosed, not smoothed: (1) the General Fund receipts detail as extracted sums to $1,538,221, exactly $260,000 above the printed receipts total of $1,278,221 — one extracted line or column is overstated by that amount; the printed total is reported and the detail sum is not presented as the total; (2) the 2024 and 2025 General Fund columns in extraction are garbled and rotated (resources and subtotal figures conflict between the fund page and the detail page), so this page uses 2026 figures only; (3) the Bond & Interest authority was blank in the certificate extraction and is not claimed.
- Debt not claimed: the indebtedness and lease-purchase statements are rotated in extraction; revenue-bond lines read “none” but the statements as a whole are illegible, so this page does not claim zero debt and reports no indebtedness figure.
- County palette: no verified Republic County palette was on file, so this page uses the neutral Hometown Numbers dark-glass theme rather than a county color.