Dear Neighbor,
Minnesota has become unaffordable for many families and businesses. People are suffering the consequences of reckless spending and unnecessary tax increases at the Capitol, especially when the former trifecta sent state spending soaring by 40 percent with $10 billion in tax increases to boot.
It’s time to help people and get our state back on a better path, which is exactly what a new House Republican package of bills does. The “North Star Comeback” would provide nearly $4 billion in tax relief – a state record. It includes $1 billion in one-time property tax relief, eliminates taxes on tips and overtime, and reduces car tab fees.
There are three main components in the package: protecting family budgets, making government work for Minnesotans, and building a world-class economy where businesses can survive and thrive. These priorities reflect what we are hearing across the state as families, businesses, and local governments feel the pinch in today’s economy.
I enjoyed recently meeting with officials from Luther Haven, which has been a community staple in Montevideo while providing care for the last 60 years. Luther Haven and other nursing homes around the state are sharing concerns about inadequate state funding from and other factors that are presenting enormous financial challenges for this industry.
Nursing homes around the state are closing and Greater Minnesota continues to be disproportionately affected. What’s worse is the governor recently proposed slashing nursing home funding by $57 million. That's the wrong direction and we need to do more, not less, to support our nursing homes to provide the elderly and vulnerable citizens with the services they need and places such as Luther Haven are working extremely hard to deliver.
Many of the proposals in the North Star Comeback are common-sense policies that Minnesotans broadly support. For example, several measures aimed at improving government are included, such as modernizing county-administered public service IT systems and dedicating additional funding for fraud prevention. The proposal also expands safe schools funding so that every student can learn in a secure environment.
House Republicans have made efforts to advance some of these measures, only to have House Democrats block them. For example, they stopped legislation that would provide a combined $2.05 billion in tax relief for 66,000 Minnesota businesses – at no cost to the state – by conforming to the federal tax code.
House Democrats also have blocked $1 billion in property tax relief to Minnesotans at a time when rates are rising across the state, a problem made worse by costly, unfunded mandates the former Democrat trifecta imposed on local governments, including school districts.
It makes sense to use the current, short-term $3.7 billion surplus to provide a one-time rebate to Minnesotans – especially seniors on fixed incomes – who are being taxed out of homes they have already paid for and lived in for decades.
It’s an injustice that our own government is making it unaffordable for some people to stay in their own home. The kicker is the same day House Democrats blocked property tax relief, they blocked a bill that would greatly reduce vehicle tab fees. Tab fees are much lower in neighboring states – they’re a flat $85 in Wisconsin – but Minnesotans are suffering sticker shock with some of the highest prices in the nation.
Minnesota currently ranks 44th-worst in the nation for overall tax burden and that needs to change. I’ll continue working to make Minnesota more affordable, whether it’s through provisions in the North Star Comeback or other ways. In a tied House, we just need one Democrat to get on board, and we can make it happen.
Sincerely,
Scott