Carver County lobbyists warn state budget moves shift costs to counties; highlight human services, housing and transportation outcomes

Tony Albright, the county’s legislative representative, told the Carver County Board of Commissioners at a July work session that the 2025 Minnesota legislative session and subsequent special session produced a mix of defensive wins and ongoing risks for counties.

“To say that the session started smoothly was uncharacteristic,” Albright said, describing a tied legislature earlier in the year and a roughly $6,000,000,000 budget shortfall that set the tone for bargaining and cost shifts.

The briefing summarized several outcomes with direct effects on county budgets. Lobbyists said many proposals used cost-shifting to meet a balanced-budget requirement and that counties remained a frequent target for those shifts, particularly in transportation and human services. Commissioners and staff repeatedly framed much of the lobbyists’ work as defensive—fending off larger proposals to move costs to local governments—while noting the risk that shifts could reappear in future policy years.

Courtney Jasper, a lobbyist identified as “with Polhas,” reviewed health and human services priorities the county had pushed during the session. Jasper said temporary pauses or carve-outs the legislature had previously enacted were allowed to expire and that some county exposure will resume on July 1, 2025. She also described partial program investments meant to expand capacity.

The briefing listed specific items discussed by lobbyists and staff:

- Hum…