St. Paul DSI proposes narrow 2026 budget, seeks one-time and special-fund support for ongoing programs

Angie Weasey, director of the St. Paul Department of Safety and Inspections, told the City Council Finance and Budget Committee that DSI’s proposed 2026 budget is constrained and will rely on non‑general‑fund resources, including opioid settlement dollars, the recycling and solid‑waste fund and grants, to maintain core services.

Weasey said, “This is a very, very tight budget year,” and outlined priorities that include promoting life‑safety and property protection, supporting neighborhood vitality and shifting some personnel costs to non‑general‑fund sources.

The budget proposal reallocates five full‑time equivalent positions to opioid settlement dollars to support the HEART unsheltered‑response team rather than the general fund, and proposes one DSI inspector‑3 position funded from cannabis registration revenue. Weasey said some DSI work will also be funded from recycling/solid‑waste and opioid‑settlement accounting units. She described the department’s effort to “creatively utilizing non general fund resources” to preserve capacity.

Counci…