Hennepin County presents 2026 human services budget and emergency plan as federal food-assistance cuts loom

Hennepin County leaders presented the Human Services 2026 proposed operating budget and detailed an emergency operational and policy response on Oct. 23 as federal changes threaten to interrupt food-assistance and other safety-net benefits.

The Human Services department requested a $846,100,000 operating budget for 2026, a 0.5% ($4.6 million) reduction from the 2025 adjusted operating budget, and proposed using $60,200,000 of fund balance. County staff told commissioners the 2026 request reflects a 1.8% ($5.8 million) increase in property tax support for human services while targeting a department workforce of 3,718 full-time equivalents (FTEs), down roughly 6% from 2025 by managing attrition and work allocation.

County officials emphasized that the budget must be read alongside a parallel operational response to near-term federal changes affecting SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), WIC (Women, Infants and Children) and MFIP (Minnesota Family Investment Program). Reggie Wagner, director of economic supports, told the board the county has about 110,000 active SNAP recipients and that Minnesota has roughly 440,000 people on SNAP statewide. He said SNAP payments are staggered over early November and that an interruption could affect families at different dates rather than a single day.

Commissioners said they were focused on both immediate operational steps and on building a single strategic request to the state to avoid a series of one-off appeals. County Administrator Jody Wendland warned against creating dependency by repeatedly solving problems that are primarily…