IRON MOUNTAIN — Health insurance rates are up 18% collectively for active employees and retirees as Dickinson County prepares to hold a public hearing on a 2025 general fund budget that is up 5.3% from 2024.

In a budget memo, Controller Brian Bousley said general fund property tax revenues are also projected to be up 5.3%. The tax rate to support the budget remains at 6.1323 mills, or $6.13 per $1,000 of taxable value.

The hearing is set for 6 p.m. today during the county board’s regular meeting in the circuit courtroom of the courthouse.

The proposed 2025 general fund budget totals $13.28 million, up from $12.62 million in 2024. Wages and benefits for current employees will account for about 70% of expenditures, Bousley said.

Property taxes are the largest portion of revenue collected by the county at 51%, Bousley said. Those revenues are projected at $6.8 million in 2025. For a house with an assessed value of $100,000 and a taxable value of $50,000, the levy for county government amounts to a property tax of $307.

Addressing health insurance, Bousley noted active employees continue to pay 20% of the cost of premiums. A move to high-deductible plans, combined with Health Savings Accounts or Health Reimbursement Accounts, led to reduced health insurance rates as recently as four years ago. The trend since has been upward.

MESSA, a nonprofit association available to public employees, administers health insurance for active employees. The county contracts with Mercer, a human resources consulting firm, to administer health care benefits for county retirees who are eligible for Medicare.

Retiree insurance is budgeted at $580,000 in 2025, down from $595,625 in 2024.

The county in 2025 will be in the final year of four-year collective bargaining agreements with unionized employees.

Some 2025 budget highlights:

— The county’s state shared revenue payment in 2025 will be about $766,000, which is nearly a 12% increase from fiscal year 2024. However, that’s more than offset by an anticipated $95,000 decline in Michigan’s community stabilization program payment, which falls to $1.2 million. The stabilization program is a component of personal property tax reforms enacted in 2014.

— The Municipal Employees’ Retirement System of Michigan payment is budgeted at $1.75 million, an increase of 3.1%. The county faces an unfunded MERS pension liability estimated at $21 million as of 2023. The plan has assets of $28 million, putting the pre-funded level at roughly 60%. In 2018 the county moved to a defined contribution benefit plan for new hires, which Bousley said in the long run is expected to save on legacy costs.

— In addition to dedicated millage support of 0.0999 mils, or 10 cents per $1,000 of taxable value, the county’s Veteran Services Office will be funded through state grants totaling $70,000. This allows the county to have two full-time service officers, one at 40 hours per week and another at 30 hours per week.

— The county construction department continues with two full-time employees to ensure timely completion and maintenance of county projects and properties.

— A snow-removal equipment storage building is under construction at Ford Airport, with estimated completion in April. An additional four office spaces are available for lease at a county hangar at the airport that now houses the Veterans Services Office and Medical Care Access Coalition.

— Federal funding for the Transportation Security Administation’s Law Enforcement Reimbursement Program was discontinued in early 2024 and it’s unknown if it will be resumed in 2025. The program had paid $30 per hour for law enforcement presence during incoming and outgoing flights at Ford Airport.

— The medical examiner budget is $211,489. The county for a second year will operate an autopsy service based at the airport. Currently, Iron County contracts for services and several other counties have paid for services as needed. The goal is for the department to become cost-neutral. The medical examiner facility was built using federal American Rescue Plan funds.

— North Dickinson County School District has added a school resource officer under an agreement with the sheriff’s office. The district has obtained a school safety grant to help pay for the deputy’s service.

— The parks department appropriation is $18,480. It remains the county’s intent to have a self-sufficient parks system, Bousley said. Lake Antoine Park Partners has provided funding and volunteer labor that has aided greatly in park upkeep and improvements.

— The allocation for Michigan State University-Extension is $81,000, up from $75,000.

— The county has 199,942 acres of land under control of the state. Payments per acres are adjusted annually by 5% or the inflation index, whichever is less. Swampland tax revenues should generate about $504,000 in 2025, Bousley said.

— The unassigned general fund balance at the beginning of the 2024 budget was $3.87 million, or 29% of general fund spending. Bousley said that number is expected to be down somewhat entering 2025. The county aims for an unassigned fund balance of at least 25%, with any overages moved into contingency, a capital improvement fund or MERS obligations.