Today, Mayor Jacob Frey’s 2024 budget was adopted by the City Council. This budget marks the mayor’s first full, two-year budget cycle and shows the product of a collaborative effort between the mayor’s office, the budget team, City staff, and the City Council.
At the start of the budget process this year, Mayor Frey consulted Council Members to collect input around their priorities for this budget. The mayor invited the council to partner in this process in May and received feedback and specific priorities from all 13 Council Members. During the mayor’s budget address on August 15, he thanked the Council for their collaboration and outlined how their priorities made it into his recommended budget.
The 2024 budget includes significant investments in the City’s record-setting affordable housing production, a historic level of funding for public housing, strategic inclusive economic recovery work, and alternatives for public safety strategies and police reform. The budget also triples funding for climate action work across Minneapolis and allocates historic funding for the health of the city’s parks and public water systems.
Mayor Frey’s 2024 budget totals $1.8 billion, with a tax levy increase of 6.2% – which is the exact levy increase he promised last year as a part of the biennial budget process.
“Through this budget, we're positioning Minneapolis for progress on both courageous, new work and bedrock government service,” said Frey. “Our residents want a safe community, thriving small and local businesses, actionable progress on the climate crisis, and an affordable place to call home. These are things we can and will deliver on. This budget lays out generational investments in the city we love – for residents who call Minneapolis home today and for those who will call it home years from now. I want to thank our entire budget team for their work on this, especially Chief Financial Officer Dushani Dye and Budget Director Jayne Discenza.”
“This budget is a product of a lot of collaboration and hard work on behalf of our Minneapolis residents. I am grateful to our budget team, City staff, the mayor, and council members for their continued partnership,” said Dushani Dye, Chief Financial Officer of the City of Minneapolis. “With this budget, we are making innovative and strategic investments that are fiscally responsible – improving the lives of those who call Minneapolis home. This is a budget that supports new ideas and exciting visions and is something we can all be proud of.”
Highlights from Mayor Frey’s 2024 budget:
Affordable and Public Housing
- Adds an additional $4 million in the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority, bringing the total ongoing funding to $5 million -- five times the previous funding level
- Increases funding to $18 million for the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, helping produce and preserve quality affordable housing across Minneapolis
- Invests $2 million in Minneapolis Homes, increasing affordable homeownership opportunities and addressing racial disparities in homeownership
- Adds $950,000 in capital funding for additional shelter capacity to help residents facing homelessness
- Expands Proactive Renter’s First and Alternative Enforcement Initiatives by more than $300,000, helping provide additional staff to focus on holding property owners accountable when traditional enforcement is not effective
- Replenishes the Renter Relocation Fund with $150,000 in one-time funding and $90,000 in going funding to continue providing services
Climate and Public Health
- Invests $10 million annually into the Minneapolis Climate Legacy Initiative to support the City’s climate goals over the next decade, tripling previous climate work investments
- This investment includes: $4.7 million toward weatherizing all homes in Minneapolis, $1.4 million in workforce training, and $850,000 in the City’s tree canopy program
- Puts forward nearly $3 million to address the opioid crisis, including for culturally responsive treatment facilities, new programming, and additional staff
- Invests $500,000 into Turning Point, a nonprofit on the Northside that provides culturally specific behavioral health services and training
- Adds nearly $1 million to a medical mobile unit that will travel around the city to provide opioid treatment and services to residents
- Adds $730,000 to go toward Electric Vehicle Charging stations across Minneapolis
Economic Inclusion
- Invests an additional $3 million to the Ownership and Opportunity Fund to provide ownership opportunities to local BIPOC small business owners
- Adds nearly $1.3 million for future planning and development of George Floyd Square, including art preservation and community engagement
- Provides a direct investment of $420,000 in neighborhood organizations across the city, increasing the base budget for each neighborhood from $10,000 to $15,000 and ensuring that every neighborhood receives a minimum of $5,000 in equitable engagement funds
- Supports the implementation of recommendations from the Vibrant Downtown Storefronts Workgroup with $650,000 in funding
- Invests $315,000 in the Community Planning and Economic Development (CPED) department to help plan for upcoming recreational cannabis regulations
- Adds a Director of Strategic Initiatives in CPED to coordinate downtown activity and build partnerships
- Continues the Warehouse District Live pilot program with $750,000
- Expands funding for Black Business Week and Latino Business Week in Minneapolis
- Continues the Community Outreach and Safety Program that provides competitive grants to community-based organizations to provide training for young people interested in public safety careers
Community Safety and Police Reform
- Invests approximately $16 million for the implementation of the federal consent decree, funding a team of 34 dedicated positions in MPD, Civil Rights, and the Information Technology.
- Expands the Behavioral Crisis Response program with ongoing funding of $2.9 million
- Funds 731 sworn officers in the Police Department and 8 classes of new hires, additionally investing $7.126 million for overtime and contracting with other law enforcement entities
- Builds out the Department of Neighborhood Safety and its violence prevention work with a $3.3 million investment
- Invests $2 million to add 15 new civilian positions within MPD to bolster investigative and administrative functions
- Supports the addition of three positions in the Office of Community Safety, helping to fulfill safety innovation work recommended through the Minneapolis Safe and Thriving Communities Report.
- Allocates $150,000 to the Minneapolis Fire Department to update computer systems in fire trucks to ensure personnel are quickly alerted of priority calls
City Capacity and Performance
- Invests $2.7 million in the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board to repair parkway systems across the city, an increase from $750,000 last year
- Allocates $500,000 annually via the City’s stormwater fee to fund critical analysis of the Park Board’s stormwater infrastructure
- Invests $470,000 for new Public Works equipment to increase lifespan of pothole repairs and continue efficient and effective snow clearance -- as well as $500,000 for a permanent snow removal and storage site
- Supports Minneapolis Animal Care and Control with a $365,000 investment, helping to better staff animal shelters
- Expands the Human Resources Department with eight permanent positions to improve the City’s ability to recruit and retain high-quality staff
- Increases investments in the Legislative Department, including constituent services planning, audit and evaluation work, data practices and records, elections, along with additional attorneys in the City Attorney’s office to support the Legislative Department.