Ramsey County Board Workshop on 2026-27 Budget Addenda – November 4, 2025
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Ramsey County Board Workshop on 2026-27 Budget Addenda – November 4, 2025
On November 4, 2025, starting at 10:30 a.m., the Ramsey County Board held a workshop in Courthouse Room 220 to review the 2026-27 budget addenda. County Manager Lynn Becker and staff presented options to reduce the general property tax levy after the board adopted a 9.75% maximum levy increase. No votes were taken; the morning session ran until about 12:15 p.m., with remaining reductions to be discussed in the afternoon.
Budget Context
- County Manager Becker explained that the addenda were developed from a 5% reduction exercise with department directors and from board feedback.
- The addenda are grouped into three categories: budget shifts, additional revenue, and reductions, totaling approximately $6 million. One percent of the levy equals roughly $4 million.
Discussion Items
- Budget Shifts:
- Six shifts reallocate levy-funded activities to other sources, including opioid settlement funds, HRA levy, state lottery funds, and wheelage tax.
- Trade-offs include reduced budget flexibility and potential long-term sustainability concerns (e.g., grant funds may not be permanent).
- Shift housing stability operating costs to opioid settlement funds: Commissioner Kervins and others expressed support for cross-departmental collaboration but asked for clarity on how the funds address the opioid epidemic. The County Manager noted the funding runway is around 10–15 years.
- Use of unspent direct assistance funds for family services: Staff explained that forecasts of families served vary annually, leaving unspent funds; a commissioner asked whether this reflected unmet need.
- Shift park maintenance funding to lottery-in-lieu funds ($40,000): A commissioner asked how residents would experience this, and staff cited delayed painting of shelters, floor refinishing, and pavement patching. A commissioner also referenced the state's failure to pay its full share for park maintenance.
- Shift public works projects to wheelage tax: This may create more restrictive allowable uses; examples include limitations on community engagement funding (e.g., Rice Street) and project-related costs. Commissioner Jefferson noted the importance of maintaining engagement flexibility.
- Additional Revenue:
- Reclassification of navigators makes them eligible for the random moment time study, generating approximately $500,000 in federal revenue; this is considered a conservative estimate.
- Increased investment revenue assumptions (2.5% return) on the county's investment portfolio, an ongoing revenue source.
- Reductions:
- Delay the CEO Next cohort to 2027, reducing the levy by $90,000; the program supports second-stage business leaders. Commissioners asked for program outcome data and exploration of sponsorships/partnerships. Staff noted possible HRA/EDA administrative percentage impacts, with a commitment to keep city-partner administrative expenses at 10%.
- Reduce the operating contribution to the Ramsey County Historical Society by $4,000, from an $8,700 annual contribution. Staff noted the society's budget is in the low millions and that the society's leader understood the decision.
Key Outcomes
- No votes taken; workshop was for discussion only.
- Staff will provide additional information on housing stability service demand and opioid fund alignment, CEO Next program evaluation, and HRA administrative percentage impacts.
- Additional reductions were deferred to the afternoon session.
Meeting Transcript
Oh, that's one of the same things. This is 28 months in that I'll pinch it on here. Okay. The next remote closed by you. I'd like to call to order this workshop. Today's workshop topic is the uh 20 26, 27 budget agenda. There'll be no votes taken at this workshop. This thought would be introductions to commissioners and then the audience. Rafael Otega, District 5. Garrison McMurch for Commissioner of District 3. Kelly Miller, Commissioner District 7. Joanna Bird, Deputy Co Manager. Alex Pitts of Chief Financial Officer. Okay. Lynn Becker County Manager. Rena Moran, Commissioner District 4. Mary John McGuire, Commissioner District 2. Target Evansing, Commissioner District 1. My Change, Commissioner District 6. Jason Yang Chief. Yeah, if I say she can find the answer box. Nancy Pass, Director of Rams County Mercy Center. Rose Lundley, Director of Communications and Public Relations. Michael Silver Policy Mr. Scott. Maybe I'll be working on the manager possible. We hear over Collins, Deputy Pendant Manager, Economic Burrow from Community West Month. Karen French, Deputy County Manager, Information and Public Records. Larry Zerman, also in Lizard, sorry. Whitney Moore, Planning Specialist, ARI. Jennifer Merck, Director of Government Relations. Christy Cox Planning Manager, County Manager's Office. Lindsay Bernard Policy and Administrative Strategy. Thank you. Why don't I uh put your technical link? All right, thank you, Mr. Chair. I know we're tight on time. So I think one of the goals is I'll just quickly go through a couple background slides and then uh the addenda that we're proposing come in um three different uh buckets essentially. So ideally, if we could get through the first couple in about half hour, I think that'll leave us enough time with the afternoon workshop as well to um get to the reduction. So if we can go to the next slide, who's striving to do that? Jason is left. Okay. Um so uh as we've as we as we've talked um uh pretty significantly counties across the state and nation are navigating really challenging times and there's a lot of significant cost shifts and unfunded mandates. Uh on September 2nd, when I presented the budget to you, it um I called it a budget of responsible choices that helped three things two at the same time. Um we made some reductions in uh staffing. We also um did some service cuts as well as made some additional investments because I felt that all those were um things that we needed to sort of show ourselves up for the future. Um, on September 23rd, the board adopted your 2026 maximum property tax levy at 9.75. That is a very significant levy for this county, and that um obviously you know that that has significant impacts for property owners. Um your direction to me was to find additional potential options to further bring down that levy.
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