A little over a month and a half ago, County Executive Chris Ronayne and Office of Budget and Management Director Walter Parfejewiec were in front of County Council introducing Executive Ronayne’s recommended budget for 2026 and 2027. The recommended budget was a leaner budget, as expected, reflecting lagging revenues and operating in a post-COVID budget world.
County Council held many hearings to learn about the recommended budget and the reductions included to ensure that expenditures match projected revenues. The impact of the reductions was discussed in detail, and all parties present consistently noted that the need for health and human services in Cuyahoga County has not decreased, even though funding for services is decreasing because of limited revenues. After learning more about the recommended budget through budget hearings and making a couple of changes through amendments, Cuyahoga County Council passed the budget resolution on December 9, 2025.
Three budget amendments
County Council approved three budget amendments throughout the budget process. This includes two technical amendments submitted by the Executive on November 17, 2025, and November 24, 2025, neither of which had an impact on the Health and Human Services Levy fund. These technical amendments addressed general fund agencies and sales tax projections.
The one amendment that did impact the health and human services was initiated by the Council.
The one amendment that did impact the health and human services was the amendment initiated by the Council. The Council’s amendment maintains County support to MetroHealth at $35.0 million and partially restores funding to the Greater Cleveland Works Scholarship, Canopy, and the Closing the Achievement Gap (CTAG) program. The table below illustrates the changes included in the amendment by the agency the additional funding is appropriated in.
Moving forward
While the legislative budget process has ended, the real work now begins. Departments must adhere to the budget resolution and ensure that expenditures remain consistent with the appropriated spending levels. Some of the uncertainties present at the start of the process persist. In particular, questions remain about federal funding and whether revenues, primarily property taxes supporting health and human services, will align with the projections on which the budget was based.
Departments must adhere to the budget resolution and ensure that expenditures remain consistent with the appropriated spending levels.
As the year unfolds, The Center for Community Solutions will continue to monitor the health of Cuyahoga County’s safety net and remain committed to the importance of maintaining a healthy health and human services sector.
If you missed our past coverage of the Cuyahoga County budget process, check out the articles below to catch up. Articles are posted in the order they were published.
