LEGISLATIVE UPDATE FROMREP. JEREMY MUNSON - DISTRICT 23B Sunday December 12th, 2021 -- This past week the state released its budget forecast showing a $7.7 billion surplus. That news was shared Tuesday by Minnesota Management and Budget as part of its November 2021 Budget and Economic Forecast. This is the second of two annual economic estimates the state uses to inform its budgeting and policy decisions, November’s forecast continued the upbeat outlook predicted in the February 2021 Budget and Economic Forecast which called for a $1.6 billion surplus.  This is a state record for overtaxing its citizens! We have never had a surplus this large before and it’s not because we are in an economic boom. This is not one-time money but rather individual income and sales taxes which are driving the surplus. It's important to remember that when the cost of goods increases so do the taxes associated with it. In short, this surplus was created from your hard-earned money. You worked for this. We often forget that government does not produce anything. They don’t earn money by selling goods their workers make. Rather they collect money from its citizens to cover basic needs like roads, bridges, and our beautiful parks. Now Governor Walz and the DFL have been told they have the largest pocketbook in the state's history; all earned by their citizens and stolen by them. What do they decide to do with it? Spend it all on more government programs. What Governor Walz and the DFL fail to understand is that we don’t need more government to help people; We need less. In this upcoming session I will be reintroducing my Give it Back Act to return these ill-gotten gains back to the people who actually worked for it in the first place. If passed, my Give It Back Act would put $3,000 into the wallets of every tax-paying Minnesotan and $6,000 for married couples. Returning the excess money from failed Government policies directly to the people is how the surplus should be handled not by bloating our state government to make it more like California. I offer a detailed explanation of the Give it Back Act, along with other legislation I have authored on my weekly legislative podcast. Thank you for being engaged in Government,  Jeremy Munson State Representative, 23B |