Residents urge restraint as Winona County opens public hearing on 2026 budget and levies
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Summary
Dozens of residents told the Winona County Board the proposed 2026 levy increases are unaffordable for seniors, farmers and small businesses; the board heard tax-discrepancy reports, debated transparency on outside-agency funding and set follow-up steps before closing the hearing.
Winona County commissioners opened a public hearing on Dec. 16 to take testimony on the draft 2026 budget, fee schedule and transportation sales-tax projects, hearing repeated complaints that planned levy increases are excessive.
Speakers representing a range of neighborhoods and occupations — including farmers, seniors and small-business owners — described spikes in their 2026 tax statements and urged the board to scrutinize outside-agency contributions and capital spending. Ted Hazleton, a seasonal worker, told the board a more modest increase would be “5 to 7%,” and called the proposed more-than-12% levy “excessively high” for people on fixed incomes.
The hearing brought several concrete requests and data points for staff to follow up on. County Auditor-Treasurer Chelsea Wilbright reminded residents that valuation and levy are distinct components of a tax bill and offered signups for assessor follow-ups; she said neighbors should check truth-in-taxation notices and contact the assessor if exclusions or homestead credits are missing. Multiple speakers said some parcels saw very large tax increases: one speaker reported a 95.1% increase for an agricultural parcel despite only a ~10% valuation change and asked staff to verify the anomaly.
Several residents pressed the board on the county’s process for outside-agency funding. Linda Johnson (La Crescent) said Winona County contributed more than $739,000 to outside agencies in 2025 and that the county is projected to contribute over $820,000 in 2026; she urged strict adherence to the county’s request-for-funds application and called for a financial advisory committee to ensure accountability.
Board members responded by promising follow-up. Commissioners urged staff and the new finance director to work with concerned residents to clarify line items and provide detailed explanations about capital projects and levy-funded uses. Commissioner comments ranged from supporting modest operational restraints to arguing that selected investments in housing and safety-net programs remain necessary.
The board took formal testimony on a number of budget line items and closed the public hearing by motion later in the meeting. Next procedural steps: staff will compile answers to residents’ questions (including valuation and parcel-specific inquiries) and the board will consider final levy votes at the board’s December session scheduled to take up the levy vote on Dec. 23.
Ending: The board closed the hearing and proceeded to later agenda items, including votes on a housing-related levy request and internal personnel resolutions.
