The Adopted $1.7 Billion County Budget is Final

October 27, 2026

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The adopted $1.7 billion Onondaga County budget is final. The Legislature, earlier this month, voted 17-0 to adopt the $1.7 billion spending plan built from shared priorities named by the Legislature and the County Executive over the past year. The Legislature transmitted the adopted County Budget to the Office of the County Executive October 8. The County Executive returned the budget and amendments largely in place apart from a single-item veto to restore the County Board of Election Commissioners’ salaries. With the veto period closed as of October 25, the Legislature did not hold a special session to override the veto, therefore the 2027 Adopted Budget is final.

This year’s process delivered a complete budget yielding investment in Onondaga County’s people, housing opportunities and community assets. The Legislature’s critical review of the budget included more than 30 department presentations across 18 meetings and 22 hours of deliberation.

Leg. Maurice Brown, Chair of Ways & Means, said, “This is a complete budget, and it’s the right budget for Onondaga County in this moment. We went line by line. We heard from every department. We asked who each dollar serves. And ultimately, along with the County Executive, made the right investments in funding caseworkers, childcare, food pantries, and housing people can afford. These aren’t extras. They are how growth reaches each County resident.”

Minority Leader Brian May said, “The end of this process signifies that this body put its fingerprints on a budget that was proposed to us. It was a good budget to start with and the review, by and large, made it better in enough ways that everyone could get behind it. I’m proud that this budget strategically addresses needs across County government and throughout our community.”

The 2027 budget will hold $3 million in spending in contingency to ensure transparency in spending for the following programs:

$2,000,000 for a Gen Z Down Payment Assistance Program
$350,000 for a Local Farm & Food Security pilot
$420,000 being monitored for a Water Environment Protection federal lobbying contract
$312,500 similarly being monitored for the Honeywell consent decree capital projects

“Passing the budget is step one,” said Brown. “Managing the fiscal health of the county and delivering these funds through accountable measures comes next.”

The 2027 Budget Priorities

The adopted budget totals approximately $1.7M and lowers the tax rate through a 9.1% tax cut. The Legislature also approved a local law, sponsored by Chairwoman Watts, creating the Onondaga County Housing Opportunity & Momentum Expansion Corporation (ON HOME) set to finance home improvement, neighborhood homeownership, and mixed-income development often referred to as “the missing middle” in housing programs.

Chairwoman Nicole Watts said, “We came into this budget with a priority of housing, people, and community. I’m proud to see our county invest in all three. Every priority made it through. For that, I credit residents for responding to an early call for engagement. A budget built by both branches of government demonstrates that we are listening and delivering.”

Legislative priorities made through the Ways & Means Committee, and budget amendments include:

Child welfare caseworkers: Six caseworkers for the Department of Children and Family Services to reduce caseloads, keep experienced workers, and reach families earlier.
Overdose response: Two peer specialists and a case manager so the Health Department’s program covers more hours and more of the county.
Farm & Food Security Program: A Department of Social Services coordinator to oversee the county’s food security investments, and $250,000 for the Agriculture Council for the Syracuse Onondaga Food Systems Alliance.
Sheriff’s vehicles: An additional $750,000 for Sheriff’s Office vehicles.
SHAPE UP for Veterans Program: $250,000 for a successful County home repair program administered by Community Development. Eligible homeowners are 62 and older or disabled and can apply for help to cover the costs of necessary home repairs.

In addition, Executive budget initiatives also focused on investing in people and community needs such as $250,000 in Senior Center grants, new funding for tick surveillance and education, an academic health collaboration with SUNY Upstate Medical University, and $3 million set aside for future county water system improvements.

Majority Leader Nodesia Hernandez said, “All year, community agencies told us the same thing: more families are coming through their doors, and those families need more help. Food pantries, neighborhood grocery stores, caseworkers, and community resource organizations are more than budget lines; they are lifelines.”

“We know the county cannot replace every federal cut. What we can do is make sure the organizations that catch families when they fall are not standing alone. That is what this budget does,” she said.

The final 2027 County Budget and Capital Improvement Plan can be found online at https://onondaga.gov/finance/budget-documents.

Full Statements on 2027 County Budget

“This is a complete budget and it’s the right budget for Onondaga County in this moment. I’m proud of the work we did and prouder of our focus on working families and both the current and future of our housing stock and community assets.

We went line by line. We heard from every department. We asked who each dollar serves. And ultimately, along with the County Executive, made the right investments in funding caseworkers, childcare, food pantries and housing people can afford. These aren’t extras. They are how growth reaches each County resident.

Passing the budget is step one. Managing the fiscal health of the county and delivering these funds through accountable measures, comes next.

I thank my colleagues in the Legislature and the County Executive’s team for a collaborative process.”

We came into this budget with a priority of housing, people, and community. I’m proud to see our county invest in all three. Every priority made it through. For that, I credit residents for responding to an early call for engagement. A budget built by both branches of government demonstrates that we are listening and delivering.

This Legislature set out to make sure the county’s growth work for the people who live here. That means more housing within reach, staffed human-services and support for working families, and investment in lakes, farms, arts, and all the things that make Onondaga County home.

I want to thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, Ways & Means Chair Maurice Brown, Majority and Minority Leaders, and County Executive McMahon for a process that was thoughtful and focused on delivering for our neighbors at a time of great opportunity.

We built this budget with our neighbors and community partners in mind.

All year, community agencies told us the same thing: more families are coming through their doors, and those families need more help. Food pantries, neighborhood grocery stores, caseworkers, and community resource agencies are more than budget lines; they are lifelines.

This budget answers them. It adds six child welfare caseworkers so families are reached sooner and the people who care for them stay in the work. It puts someone at the Department of Social Services in charge of making sure our food security investments reach the families who need them. It supports our senior centers and the local food system that feeds this county. And it does all of this while lowering the tax rate.

We know the county cannot replace every federal cut. What we can do is make sure the organizations that catch families when they fall are not standing alone. That is what this budget does.

I thank the Democratic Majority, our partners in building this budget, the Republican Minority, and the County Executive all for their time and attention during such a pivotal year for investing in regional needs. I commend Ways & Means Chair Leg. Brown for creating a strong and thorough process. Ten months ago, we said we wanted to look back on this as the year Onondaga County decided to invest in everyone. This year demonstrates a strong start.”

The end of this process signifies that this body put its fingerprints on a budget that was proposed to us. It was a good budget to start with and the review, by and large, made it better in enough ways that everyone could get behind it. I’m proud that this budget strategically addresses needs across County government and throughout our community.

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