Start with the budget amount and the hearing date

Here are the starting points. The stories explain the decisions and records behind them.

• Proposed General Fund spending: $26,954,270. Prior-year summary amount: $24,917,107. Difference: $2,037,163. Calculation: $2,037,163 ÷ $24,917,107 × 100 = 8.175760533%, rounded to 8.18%. County summary
• Public explanations exist: August workshop minutes document substantive discussion of major spending areas. The review gives those explanations weight. August minutes
• The hearing date is established: October 1, with consideration of adoption scheduled for October 8. Neither event has occurred as of this report. Published notice