Dear Neighbor,
Good day from St. Paul, where this week we received word the state’s budget surplus has increased and committee work is ramping up with a key March 10 deadline looming.
Before we get to that, I want to thank the good number of District 12B citizens who attended town hall meetings I co-hosted with Sen. Torrey Westrom last Friday in Glenwood, Sauk Centre and Melrose.
The feedback we received from constituents during the meetings will be helpful as we progress through the session. One concern we heard that resonates pertains to the state’s cumbersome regulatory process which is hampering business expansion. For example, an ethanol plant is attempting to expand, but the state’s inefficient permitting process has really dragged out the project. The Legislature made some improvements to streamline permitting a few years ago, but more work is needed in that area.
Another productive event I attended Friday was a federal farm bill informational meeting in St. Cloud, hosted by Congressman Tom Emmer. I found it helpful that we were electronically linked with the House Agriculture Committee chair, Mike Conaway, of Texas, and were able to ask questions about the upcoming farm bill debate. One thing I asked was about the possibility of increasing the number of acres allowed in the CRP program, to which he responded that would depend on how much funding was available for the program. I wrote more about this subject in a column I submitted to area newspapers this week, so either check your local paper for more or go to this link.
As for the economic news, Minnesota Management & Budget on Tuesday issued an updated state economic forecast and it projects a $1.65 billion surplus through the 2018-19 biennium. This is an increase of about $250 million over the previous full forecast issued in December.
This is good news for the bottom line, but I want to underscore the importance of proceeding with caution as we put a new state budget in place this session. The ag economy, for example, remains unsteady and there are uncertainties at the federal level to take into consideration. The plan we put together should focus on priorities, such as tax relief, without overextending and leaving ourselves vulnerable if and when unanticipated changes in the economy occur.
In committees, the ag policy panel I chair conducted hearings for around 10 bills over two days this week. One notable proposal would require the Department of Agriculture to notify citizens via the media when the presence of an invasive weed – such as Palmer amaranth – is detected in a county. The infiltration of Palmer amaranth has made headlines in recent months and this bill could help us contain this aggressive plant which threatens our state’s crops.
I will pass along more news as things develop in St. Paul. Work on crafting a new two-year state budget will pick up since we now have updated economic information to serve as a guideline, so stay tuned for more on that in particular.
Sincerely,
Paul