County Council 2026 To-Do List

January 17, 2026

This is going to be a busy year at County Council. The following are some of the major items we have on our 2026 to-do list.

1. BUDGET MONITORING: The 2026-7 biennial budget was narrowly balanced with optimistic numbers on some items on both the revenue and expenditure side. We will have to watch the budget closely all year long, work to find savings and efficiencies that do not affect services, and make adjustments as needed.

2. RESPOND to STATE and FEDERAL DEVELOPMENTS: State and federal budget and policy changes are expected to have significant impacts. Federal changes to SNAP (food assistance) and Medicaid include additional work requirements and more frequent redeterminations, which add local administrative cost. The federal government is reducing its financial support for administration of SNAP. So far, the state is not making up any of the difference. This could add $7 million per year to our cost to run the program. This could jeopardize the significant progress we made in 2025 in reducing wait times on calls relating to SNAP and Medicaid benefits.

3. BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CRISIS CENTER: Council will need to pass legislation to provide operating support for the first three years for the new Behavioral Health Crisis Center, which is now under construction at the site of the former St. Vincent Charity Hospital. The center is expected to phase in the start of its operations, beginning in September of this year.

4. LAW DEPARTMENT & PROSECUTOR: County Prosecutor Mike O'Malley created administrative uncertainty last year by renouncing the Memorandum of Understanding which allocated duties between the Law Department and the Prosecutor's Office. The County administration is working with the Prosecutor to get the situation clarified. It may take a charter amendment to provide clarity on the respective duties of the two offices. Any amendment to the County Charter must be approved by a vote of two-thirds of Council and be approved by the voters.

5. SPORTS FACILITY MAINTENANCE: The current sin tax does not provide enough revenue to properly maintain the ballpark and the arena, which require about $15 million each on an annual basis. Proper maintenance is way preferable to building expensive new facilities every 25 years or so. The most workable solution would be an enhanced version of the sin tax, but such a solution would require all three sports teams, Executive Ronayne, County Council, the State Legislature, and the voters to get on the same page and implement a plan. It is a challenging task.

6. JUSTICE CENTER & COURTHOUSE: In addition to the jail, our justice center and courthouse facilities are old and in need of renovation and replacement. The county is considering renovation or new construction at the current site or renovation of the Centennial Building at East 9th & Euclid. Our hope is to determine costs and have a plan in place by the end of the year.

7. VIOLENCE PREVENTION: In 2025, the Executive and Council approved creation of an Office of Violence Prevention to pursue preventive approaches that complement law enforcement. Myesha Watkins was appointed as director, but little additional funding was added. Our goals for this year are to do a community listening tour and to identify county and philanthropic funding to create a more substantial program.

8. BUDGET UPDATE: As we move toward the end of the year, we will have an off-year smaller budget process to update the biennial budget for 2027, the second year of the budget. There are a lot of financial uncertainties this year, and we may have to make significant adjustments in the budget update to respond to financial changes that take place this year.