As the Burnet County budget for the upcoming fiscal year nears approval, elected officials are looking at 2.7-percent cost-of-living raises.

The pay increases are part of the proposed 2025-26 budget, which the Burnet County Commissioners Court is expected to discuss and possibly adopt, along with a new tax rate, on Sept. 9 . This year’s proposed raises for elected officials are significantly less than last year’s 6-percent-plus bumps.

Precinct 4 Commissioner Joe Don Dockery proposed 2.7-percent for most elected officials based on year-to-date data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which shows a 2.7-percent increase on the Consumer Price Index from July 2024 to July 2025 . The CPI measures cost-of-living expenses such as housing, food, and transportation.

“I don’t think that

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