Key takeaways as the St. Paul City Council approves its 2026 budget

The St. Paul City Council approved a 2026 city budget Wednesday evening that will increase property taxes and fees for most residents.

The budget, which Mayor Melvin Carter is expected to sign, increases the levy — the total amount raised via property taxes — by 5.3%.

The council made changes to the $887 million budget that Carter proposed in September, but the total dollar figure was unchanged. By far the largest piece of the pie is the $236 million Department of Public Works budget.

Council members had said they wanted to lower the levy below Carter’s proposal, as the council did in 2025, but they failed to do so this year. Several said they wanted to work harder to contain costs next year.

“I hope that for next year we can really commit to that, knowing that the cost of living and for businesses here is only going to increase,” Council Member Nelsie Yang said.

Under the budget approved Wednesday, the owner of a $289,200 median-value home would see the city portion of their property tax bill increase by $107.

Other charges, including sewer and water rate increases, bring the total increase in city charges to $232 per year for the same home.

Most of the money from city taxes goes to the Department of Public Works and St. Paul’s police and fire departments.

Carter’s proposed budget sought to cut from the Fire Department, but the budget passed by the City Council restores funding for three firefighters.

The council also opted against cutting an infrequently used overnight shift of “basic life support” medics, who provide care for less severe ailments. Funding to keep that shift will come from increased ambulance fees.

The police budget cut funding for several vacant positions, including two patrol officers and one commander, and trimmed its overtime budget.

Carter proposed cutting hours at the Arlington Hills Library, but the budget will keep its hours unchanged in 2026. Rec center hours will also stay the same across the city, after Carter proposed cutting some early-morning hours at rec centers that saw the fewest visitors.

The budget adds $5 million in subsidies to boost downtown, much of it for office-to-apartment conversions, with money also available for other projects meant to support “vitality” in the beleaguered core.

The budget will also include more funding for rental assistance.

In a bid to create revenue — and as more workers return to downtown — St. Paul will beef up parking enforcement in 2026, hiring three new officers to mind meters and parking rules. The officers’ work is expected to pay for their salaries and then some.

Carter’s budget had called for two enforcement officers to be cut, but the council restored both jobs and added three. An emphasis on parking enforcement jibes with a priority of Mayor-elect Kaohly Her, who spoke about the issue during the campaign, saying it could be one small way to help offset residents’ costs.