# Mike Slavik *Chair of the Dakota County Board when it adopted the county's 2026 levy and budget.* Mike Slavik was chair of the [[Dakota County Board]] in [[Minnesota]] when the board adopted Dakota County's 2026 levy and budget on December 16, 2025.[^1] He enters the record through the statement he gave on that budget, which the *Cannon Falls Beacon* reported.[^1] The board adopted a levy of $184 million, a 9.9 percent increase over the prior levy. The levy funds a $383 million operating budget, or $527 million once capital is included. To reach those figures, the board cut $8.8 million and more than 44 full-time positions.[^1] Slavik described the budget as "a challenge that we all faced due to many things that were out of our control." The same report put unfunded mandates at roughly 70 percent of the operating budget.[^1] ## Who The record identifies Slavik as Board Chair of the Dakota County Board as of December 16, 2025.[^1] It does not establish his party affiliation, commissioner district, or term of office, and it does not record how individual commissioners voted on the levy.[^1] ## What On December 16, 2025, the Dakota County Board adopted the county's 2026 levy and budget.[^1] Speaking as board chair, Slavik said: "This was a challenge that we all faced due to many things that were out of our control."[^1] The *Beacon*'s report states that unfunded mandates make up approximately 70 percent of the operating budget.[^1] ## When The levy and budget were adopted on December 16, 2025, for the 2026 fiscal year.[^1] ## Where The board acted for Dakota County, Minnesota. The county publishes its own proposed-tax information for residents, and the project uses that page as the county tax context for the 2026 levy.[^2] ## How much - Levy: $184 million, a 9.9 percent increase.[^1] - Operating budget: $383 million. Total including capital: $527 million.[^1] - Reductions: $8.8 million.[^1] ## How many - Positions cut: more than 44 full-time positions.[^1] - Share of the operating budget attributed to unfunded mandates: roughly 70 percent, as reported December 16, 2025.[^1] ## In the at-issue record The project's Dakota County claims matrix (September 2, 2026) carries the budget adoption as entry AI-Dakota-078, under the heading *VI. The Money*. The entry sets the chair's statement that the budget reflected things "out of our control" beside what the board did that day. Those outputs were a $184 million levy, a 9.9 percent increase, $8.8 million in cuts, and more than 44 full-time positions eliminated.[^1] The entry rests on two sources: the *Beacon* report and the county's proposed-taxes page.[^1][^2] The entry's anchor document is a March 2025 presidential action on fraud, waste and abuse.[^3] The record does not establish that the presidential action applies to Dakota County's budget or levy.[^3] ## Notes [^1]: Cannon Falls Beacon, *Dakota County 2026 budget and levy adoption* (Dec. 16, 2025) — $184 million levy, 9.9 percent increase; $383 million operating budget, $527 million with capital; $8.8 million and 44+ full-time positions cut; Board Chair Mike Slavik's statement; unfunded mandates approximately 70 percent of the operating budget. https://www.cannonfallsbeacon.com/news/government/dakot-acounty-budget-levy-2026/article_f6f8760c-e15a-45e8-8dbd-ff9981f33528.html [^2]: Dakota County, *Proposed taxes* (county residents' home and property page, undated) — county-published property-tax information; a source of at-issue entry AI-Dakota-078. https://dakotacountymn.gov/residents/home-property/proposed-taxes [^3]: The White House, *Protecting America's Bank Account Against Fraud, Waste, and Abuse* (March 2025) — presidential action designated as the anchor of at-issue entry AI-Dakota-078. https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/03/protecting-americas-bank-account-against-fraud-waste-and-abuse/