The Ramsey County Board got its first look on September 6 at the supplemental county budget for 2023 as proposed by county manager Ryan O’Connor. The $785.4 million budget is up about $2.3 million from the 2023 budget approved last December by the County Board. The increase comes from state aid and other revenue, not from the property tax levy.
The proposed levy increase of 4.54 percent is unchanged from what was tentatively approved last December. Ramsey County drafts its budget every two years, and 2023 is the second year in the biennium.
O’Connor described the 2023 budget as an effort to maintain county services and deal with the aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the second year of each budget, county officials generally forgo major changes in services and programs and focus instead on performance measures and strategic investments in system changes.
The property tax levy in 2023 will raise $346.2 million or about 44 percent of the county budget in 2023. Federal, state and other intergovernmental revenue will contribute about $216.9 million, or 28 percent of the budget. Charges for services will fund about $160.7 million, or 20 percent of the budget.
The county’s 2023 regional rail levy is proposed at $30.4 million. The Housing and Redevelopment Authority levy is proposed at $11.4 million. Those levies are unchanged from 2022 levels.
The County Board approved a $774 million budget for 2022. That was supported by a property tax levy of $338.7 million, a 1.55 percent increase over 2021.
The Ramsey County Board has until the end of September to adopt a maximum levy for 2023. After that date, the levy can be lowered but not increased. The county’s annual truth in taxation hearing is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Monday, November 28, at a site yet to be determined. The final budget for 2023 is expected to be adopted by the County Board on December 13.
— Jane McClure
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