Dear Neighbor,
Only two full weeks remain in the 2017 legislative session. The House and Senate are ahead of the typical schedule in moving budget bills through the process, but we still are working to reach a compromise with the governor.
The House and Senate have found agreement on each of the various finance bills that will shape our state’s next two-year budget. The fact we are head of schedule was done with the intent of lessening the time crunch and deadline pressure that is typical late in the session. We are eager to begin working with the governor and hope he is prepared to compromise with the legislature so we can finish our work and complete our budget.
As for the House-Senate budget agreements themselves, the most noteworthy items include $1.15 billion in tax relief, $372 million in new, ongoing funding for road and bridge infrastructure, and more than $1.1 billion in increased funding for K-12 schools compared with the previous two-year budget.
On another subject, I mentioned in this week’s newspaper column I submitted to area newspapers that our cold and wet spring has caused planting delays for farmers in Minnesota and throughout the Corn Belt. Agronomists tell us that if newly planted corn seeds absorb cold moisture shortly after they are put in the ground, it could adversely affect the germination of the seed. The last week of April is typically the biggest corn planting week of the year, but very little has been put in the ground, so far.
The snow we received earlier this week did not help matters. On Monday morning a tractor and corn planter of mine were sitting in a field that was all ready to go – except for the white landscape. It made for a pretty picture, but not what we want to see on May Day! The forecast calls for a series of bright sunshine and warm days, so let’s hope that dries out the fields and gets us back on track.
Until next time, have a good weekend.
Sincerely,
Paul