The Ramsey County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved a 2024 budget of nearly $808.5 million, along with a 6.8 percent increase in the property tax levy to help fund it.

The tax hike, which is more than double the average increase imposed by the county over the past decade, has drawn sharp criticism from property owners during public hearings.

While the median increase in tax bills countywide will be 3.8 percent, some residents will see theirs jump double digits. The median St. Paul property owner, for example, will see their tax bill increase only 0.5 percent, but their counterpart in Lauderdale will see an increase of 10.1 percent, according to information released by the county.

Ramsey County manager Ryan O’Connor, who will soon leave his post for a job as regional administrator of the Metropolitan Council, said in an August report to commissioners that the move was necessary to shore up the county’s finances after the board kept tax increases to a minimum during the pandemic to ease the burden on property owners facing financial difficulties.

“I’m proud to say that this budget proposes to bring the county into full sustainability, coming out of some of its most upending years,” O’Connor said before Tuesday’s vote. “If nothing else, I hope people leave this budget process feeling optimistic about the sustainable footing. We couldn’t feel that way … two or four years ago.”

The $808.5 million Ramsey County budget for the coming year represents a 2.9 percent increase over 2023, according to county data. Like the tax levy increase, the budget was approved unanimously by commissioners.

Commissioner Rena Moran said before the vote that Ramsey County has a lighter tax base than many other Minnesota counties, and that its property owners end up shouldering a greater share of the burden.

“We live in a county where we are in abundance of nonprofits, we are in abundance of churches, we are in abundance of state buildings — who do not pay taxes,” Moran said. “And so we have to make that up in some type of way to provide the services that you are and that we are receiving.”

Property taxes fund nearly 46 percent of the county’s budget. State and federal funds account for about 27 percent, another 18 percent comes from fees for services, while the remaining roughly 9 percent is made up from other sources.

The county’s largest expense is its health and wellness programming, which accounts for about 45 percent, or $368 million. This is an increase of 12.4 percent over what was budgeted for the same line item in 2023.

The largest increase — at 17.9 percent — went to the county’s economic growth and community investment programming. Information and public records was a close second at 16.6 percent.

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