If a series of cuts at the state level are approved, the county could get stuck absorbing more than $1 to $1.5 million in cuts that could be passed on to taxpayers.

Proposed cuts to Human Services could end up costing the county upwards of $700,000 if the state approves them — that’s on top of a $500,000 proposed cut to county aid.

“If a lot of these go through or even half of them, you’d probably be looking at a levy increase,” Human Services Director Julie Stevermer said.

While the fear is that most of the cuts could fall on taxpayers, County Coordinator Craig Oscarson said the county board will need input from the public on whether to raise taxes or make deep services cuts.

With Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton and the GOP-controlled Legislature each holding their side of the line, it’s impossible to predict what the final budget will look like.

However, it almost certainly will include deep cuts.

“If we believe the state legislative session will have no impact on the county budget, we’re fooling ourselves,” Oscarson said. “The million dollar question is how much.”

The latest round of proposed cuts is in Human Services, where the House, Senate and Dayton each have plans that would pass cuts down to the counties.

One cost shift in sex offender treatments could increase the county’s cost by $338,000, according to Oscarson.

Oscarson said his biggest complaint about the state’s cuts is that they simply pass the burden down to counties and local tax payers with few ways to make up the difference.

Due to state mandates, Oscarson said the state is just shifting cost with no relief to mandated services.

“It gives county commissioners no choice,” Oscarson said.

“It becomes a difficult way to do a budget,” he added.

Of the roughly $9 million Human Services budget, only about $35,000 is not mandated by the state, Oscarson said.

This means cuts to Human Services will have to made up in other programs in the county’s budget because they’re required by statute to maintain certain services, he added.

A likely switch to Early Expansion Medicaid could also end up requiring more work of county emplyees during and after the switch.

On top of aid shifts and unfunded mandates, bills at the state level could also add more of a burden to cities and counties.

A bill proposed in the state would keep inmates on short-term sentences in local lock-ups rather than going to state facilities. Counties would then have to absorb all the costs, including food and other services that could reach more than $20,000, according to Oscarson.