Lehigh County commissioners trimmed more than $1.39 million from the proposed 2027 budget Oct. 14, but the changes would save the owner of a median-assessed home less than $10 a year and still leave residents facing a roughly 17% increase in county property taxes.

Amid debate over the proposed tax increase, the Lehigh County Board of Commissioners approved several amendments to the county’s 2027 budget before its formal adoption. The most significant changes included eliminating proposed chief of staff and communications director positions and removing a $500,000 clean elections grant.

Before commissioners considered the amendments, County Executive Josh Siegel said the administration did not take the proposed tax increase lightly.

“I’m a taxpayer just like you, and I’m not insensitive to those increases,” Siegel said. “I realize all those pressures that you’re facing, and we have to balance the realities of making sure Lehigh County has sufficient resources.”

Later in the meeting, Siegel said the proposed tax increase was intended to place the county on a stable financial path.

“It was to put us on a five- to six-year stable trajectory and get us back to a place where the county should have been, frankly, for the last 15 years, which was making small, reasonable, incremental increases,” he said. Without those increases, he said, the county risks returning to a structural deficit in future years.

The first amendment eliminated a proposed chief of staff position. Siegel noted that county executives in larger counties such as Allegheny and Montgomery maintain multiple support staff positions and said he was seeking only a small team to help carry out the administration’s goals.

He also said he had identified ways to fund the positions through existing resources without creating an additional burden on taxpayers.

Several commissioners argued the timing was not appropriate for creating the position. The amendment passed 7-2, with Commissioners Zach Cole-Borghi and April Riddick voting against its removal.

Commissioners were more divided over the proposed communications director position.

Commissioner Sarah Fevig said she was unaware of many county services until she became a commissioner and argued the position would improve transparency and public awareness of available programs.

Commissioners Sheila Alvarado and Riddick expressed support for better public communication but questioned creating the position during a budget year that includes a proposed tax increase.

After discussion and public comment, commissioners voted 7-2 to remove the position from the budget. Cole-Borghi and Fevig voted to retain it.

Commissioners unanimously approved an amendment eliminating the budgeted $500,000 clean elections grant.

Commissioner Antonio Pineda criticized the proposal, saying, “The idea of using taxpayer dollars to fund political campaigns is insane to me. It has a lot of issues, including free speech issues in terms of giving my taxpayer dollars or anyone in this audience’s taxpayer dollars to a candidate they don’t support.”

Although Siegel said he supported the initiative, he agreed to remove it given the current budget challenges.

In another amendment, commissioners unanimously approved reallocating funds for open space preservation without increasing costs to taxpayers.

Commission Chairman Geoff Brace also said public safety positions should remain a priority.

“We can’t be in the business of eliminating core public safety functions if we’re going to succeed in our mission of providing a safe community,” Brace said.

As a result, proposed amendments that would have eliminated five vacant corrections officer positions and reduced funding for juvenile probation were withdrawn. Commissioners also approved several job classifications and pay plans without opposition.

The final amendment directed savings from approved budget cuts toward reducing the proposed millage rate.

While commissioners expressed differing views on the tax increase, many voiced concern about its impact on taxpayers. The amendment passed 6-3, with Cole-Borghi, Riddick and Pineda voting against it.

The approved amendments generated $1,392,034 in savings, reducing the proposed tax rate from 4.45 mills to 4.41 mills.

Commissioners are expected to consider final adoption of the budget at their Oct. 28 meeting. If approved, the property tax increase would be about 17%, down from the originally proposed increase of nearly 18%.