Kenosha County Executive Samantha Kerkman and County Board Chairman Monica M. Yuhas have issued statements after the adoption of the county’s 2026 budget. The board approved the new budget following several months of planning and discussion.
“I thank the County Board for its strong support of this budget, and for the months of productive collaboration leading up to tonight’s adoption vote,” Kerkman said. “This budget meets the needs of Kenosha County, and it keeps us on track to retain our top-tier AAA bond rating. It maintains our commitments to public safety, infrastructure and delivery of vital services, and it does all of this in a fiscally responsible way. It demonstrates what’s possible in county government when we work together for the good of the entire community.”
Yuhas added: “This budget affects Kenosha County families, employees, and services that people depend on every day. I want to thank every supervisor for the seriousness and respect they brought to this work, and I want to thank our county staff for the countless hours of preparation, analysis, and support that happened over the past months. The 2026 budget continues strong investment in core county services, including public safety, human services, county infrastructure, and long-term financial sustainability — while maintaining responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars.”
The adopted budget includes a 2.96 percent increase in the property tax levy. Despite this increase, the mill rate will decrease by 4.1 percent to $3.04 per $1,000 of assessed value.
There is funding set aside for a study into Sheriff’s Office operations as well as body camera video software for use by the District Attorney’s Office—part of an ongoing commitment to public safety since nearly $199 million has been invested from levy funds since 2022.
Infrastructure improvements outlined in the budget include engineering funds for Kemper Center shoreline restoration work and reconstruction projects such as Highway W from Wilmot to the Illinois state line along with continued road repaving efforts.
Kenosha County serves a diverse community including students attending local schools such as Indian Trail High School and Academy (2,001 students), Tremper High School (1,458 students), and Bradford High School (1,448 students) during the 2023-24 school year according to Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction data (https://dpi.wi.gov/). During that period, white students made up about 55.6% (14,124) of Kenosha County’s student body while Hispanic students accounted for 25.7% (6,528) and Black students represented 10.4% (2,642) (https://dpi.wi.gov/). American Indian students were among those least represented at just 0.2% during that school year (https://dpi.wi.gov/).
