Last updated: October 2026
The Town of Worcester board worked through its 2027 budget line by line at an Aug. 12 workshop, striking a major road project and setting a target of October to approve the levy.
Quick Answer: At an Aug. 12, 2026 budget workshop, the Town of Worcester board removed a road line item worth about $100,000, set the blacktop, seal coat and chip seal line to balance the draft budget at roughly $309,459, and raised a deputy wages line from $2,000 to $3,000. Members said the actual levy figure would not be known until September, with a budget hearing and levy approval targeted for the October meeting.
The session was a workshop, not a decision meeting. Nothing was formally adopted. The numbers discussed remain a draft.
What did the board cut?
The largest single change was a road project line the board removed entirely.
“I would say just strike that road line. We’ll put it at zero because we don’t need it next year,” one member said. “We don’t need big projects. So that takes $100,000 away from our expenses.”
That money effectively shifted to blacktop work. As one member put it, the freed amount was “pretty much going to go all after blacktop.”
How the road lines landed
The board reset the blacktop, seal coat and chip seal line to balance the draft. The resulting figure was about $309,459.
That number is provisional. Health insurance costs were still unknown at the workshop, and members expected it to move once those figures arrived.
What else changed?
Several smaller lines drew attention.
Deputy wages rose from $2,000 to $3,000, with members expecting the town to come in under that figure. A deputy clerk line was also discussed, with disagreement over whether the amount was adequate.
The board set salt at $2,500, which members judged sufficient to cover requirements “and then some,” though fuel costs were flagged as a possible pressure point.
The mower question
Equipment dominated a stretch of the workshop. The town’s boom mower has a repair history, and members weighed replacement against rental.
A new tractor and boom mower was estimated at $120,000 to $150,000, by a member’s own admission a guess rather than a quote. Rental alternatives were cited at around $1,000 a day.
Members noted a $12,000 valve block that cannot be repaired piecemeal, only replaced whole. That cost applies regardless of which mower head is mounted.
No decision was made. The discussion fed into whether to lower an equipment line to offset a purchase.
When will the levy be set?
Not at this meeting, and not in August.
Members said the levy amount would not be known until early September, with a budget hearing and levy approval targeted for the October meeting so the town would be ready for tax bills.
The sequence described was a budget hearing and levy meeting followed by adoption at a regular board meeting. As one member summarized, the current document was “some ink on paper” the board could sit with for two months.
Why the timing matters
Worcester’s 2027 budget has been the board’s recurring subject this year, and the workshop shows where the pressure sits: roadwork versus equipment, with health insurance still unresolved.
Striking a $100,000 road line to fund blacktop is a maintenance-first choice. It keeps the surface program funded while deferring larger projects, which is the same trade-off the town faces on its culverts and bridges.
Price County has followed Worcester’s road and budget decisions closely, from the Solberg Lake culvert rating to the $992K budget discussion that preceded this workshop.
Weather and road budgets both shape what happens here.
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FAQ
Did the Town of Worcester approve its 2027 budget?
No. The Aug. 12, 2026 session was a workshop. Members targeted the October meeting for a budget hearing and levy approval, with adoption at a regular board meeting.
How much did Worcester cut from its road line?
About $100,000. The board struck a road project line to zero and redirected the money toward blacktop, seal coat and chip seal work.
Is the town buying a new mower?
Undecided. Members discussed a new tractor and boom mower at an estimated $120,000 to $150,000, versus rental near $1,000 a day, and made no decision.
When will the levy be set?
Members expected the figure in early September and planned to set it at the October meeting, ahead of tax bills.
Sources
- Town of Worcester — Special Town Board Meeting, Aug. 12, 2026 (video)
- Price County Fun — Town of Worcester Weighs $992K Budget (Sept. 11, 2026)
- Price County Fun — Solberg Lake Culvert Rated Poor (Oct. 2, 2026)