Minneapolis City Council approves 2026 budget, spares mayor’s office cuts

After a week of arguing and horse trading, opposing factions of the Minneapolis City Council and the mayor came to an accord Tuesday on a 2026 city budget that raises taxes to maintain staffing levels, invests in public bathrooms downtown and sidesteps a contentious proposal to slash the mayor’s staff.

The $2 billion budget fully funds the charter-mandated police force, but doesn’t seek sweeping new initiatives as the city continues to implement court-overseen police reforms five years after the murder of George Floyd amid a sobering fiscal climate.

The council approved about 40 amendments to Mayor Jacob Frey’s budget proposal, requiring an 8% increase in the city’s property tax levy.

Under the budget approved by the council by a vote of 11-0, the owner of a median Minneapolis home valued at $333,000 would pay $2,272 in city property taxes in 2026, an increase of $242. Other taxing entities, like the county and school district, set their levies separately. The city levy pays for things like policing, firefighters and street repairs.

The council considered several amendments that would have eliminated the jobs of up to eight people in the mayor’s office, creating a flare of drama between Frey and the majority of the council, with whom he has frequently been at odds for the past two years.

At one point in three days of budget-markup sessions, City Operations Officer Margaret Anderson Kelliher begged the council not to lay off anybody.

“I plead with you, the mayor’s bright fluorescent line has been no layoffs,” she said.

In the end, all but one medial relations position in the mayor’s office were spared. Other changes were still being reviewed late Tuesday, including to the police department and the city attorney’s office.

The council’s changes to the budget include spending:

In the wake of the police department going $19.6 million over budget, the council approved a policy Tuesday seeking more transparency around overspending in the future.

Under the new plan, departments must alert the council to budget shortfalls, and if a department exceeds its budget, its leaders must report monthly to the council.

Departments won’t be allowed to amend their budget without council approval, with some exceptions, such as to meet payroll.

Out of frustration that the Frey administration has not carried out some of their legislation in past years, the council approved a budget policy aimed at forcing the mayor’s hand when he disagrees.

For example, last year, the council voted to remove funding for the Minneapolis Police Department’s mounted patrol, but the department found alternate funds to keep the horses anyway. Council Member Katie Cashman said once again, MPD “just didn’t do it” and that’s “incredibly wrong.”

It was at least the third time since 2009 that council members had unsuccessfully tried to defund the unit.

Council Member Robin Wonsley said the Frey administration also didn’t implement emergency housing vouchers or hire all of the civilian investigators and crime prevention specialists the council approved last year. She said if the council passes something, it should be implemented.

The policy would not allow earmarked funds to be used for other purposes without the council’s approval, and would require that the council be notified if their legislation can’t be carried out.