MICA briefs Stearns County on 2025 legislature: funding wins, cuts and program changes

Representatives from MICA (an association of larger Minnesota counties) presented a detailed 2025 legislative recap to the Stearns County Board on Aug. 12, outlining state actions that will affect county finances and programs in coming years.

Key takeaways included: • Property tax and local-aid changes: MICA presenters showed Stearns’ shifting property-tax base from 2020 to 2025, with residential increases and a dip in commercial-industrial value. Presenters said the legislature faced a multibillion-dollar structural deficit and that some previously anticipated local aids were cut or altered. • Cannabis local government aid: Funding that had been slated from cannabis gross-receipts tax (10% to counties/10% to cities under 2023 law) was not protected this session; presenters said the expected receipts had been minimal and the deduction was not preserved. • Aquatic invasive species (AIS) aid: A new quality AIS aid was set to start in 2027; Stearns is a significant dollar recipient though the per-capita formula favors smaller counties. • Transportation: MICA described an $8.6 million projected loss to county state-aid roads in the out biennium as transfers to the trunk-highway fund were slowed and the trunk-highway fund took some hits; the legislature increased electric vehicle fees to partially offset projected losses. The transportation package included $3 million for a local government road wetland replacement program. • Bonding: Final bonding included unexpectedly large amounts for county priorities — $42 million for the local road improvement program, $20 million for local bridges, and $5 million for wetland-replacement credits for road work. • Environment and solid waste: Clean Water Fund allocations exceeded $300 million over the biennium; the legislature added capital assistance (solid-waste) and a new statewide drinking-water contamination mitigation program, but overall funding constraints limited further environment progress. MICA said the state increased some fees for watercraft and permitting that will go to state programs. • Human services and public health: The legislature appropriated $35 million (plus $10 million previously set aside) for SSIS systems modernization, advanced MNChoices changes (longer reassessment intervals for stable cases), and funding for priority admissions and treatment expansion in certain facilities (roughly $75 million in a combination of operating and bonding). MICA noted some required county cost shifts that were avoided and several that remain under study. • Corrections and public safety: The legislature adopted a three-year averaging formula for community-supervision funding to smooth declines in probation caseload funding; the state is closing the Stillwater prison and proposed changes to certain state-county cost shares were described.

Presenters at the meeting included Nathan Jessen (MICA), Amber Backus (transportation liaison), Rachel Sysnowczyk (environmental liaison) and Nancy Solecki (public health and human services). Commissioners asked questions about greenhouse-gas requirements for trunk-highway projects, local reimbursement for license-center no-fee transactions, and whether reductions would affect local services.

Why it matters: Several of the enacted changes affect county revenue streams and program responsibilities in 2026 and beyond — including county program aid, transportation funding, human-services reimbursements and bonding dollars that fund local infrastructure projects. MICA staff encouraged continued county engagement as implementation details are developed.

What’s next: County staff and MICA will follow up on implementation guidance, timelines for new programs (for example AIS and drinking-water mitigation), and how counties should plan for projected out-biennium impacts.