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Hennepin County finance team warns federal funding cuts could deepen 2026 shortfalls
Summary
County CFO Joe Matthews told the Administration Operations & Budget Committee that Hennepin County's adopted $3.15 billion 2026 budget faces rising pressure from health-care costs, SNAP administrative cuts and uncertain Medicaid changes, and outlined staffing and spending strategies to limit impacts on core services.
Hennepin County officials on Jan. 13 urged residents and fellow elected leaders to prepare for the possibility that federal and state fiscal changes could significantly squeeze local services and property-tax policy.
Joe Matthews, the county's chief financial officer, presented a high-level review of the adopted $3,150,000,000 2026 budget and said three areas will strain county finances: health-care costs, state and federal cost shifts, and the cost of delivering mandated services. "We have a $3,150,000,000 budget," Matthews said, explaining that property taxes account for about a third of the total while combined federal and state patient-care and grant funding make up a larger share of operational funding.
Matthews detailed already-quantified federal…
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