Dear Neighbor,
The 2022 legislative session opened this week, and it is good to be back at work with rather important issues on the table.
So far, our focus has been on conducting initial committee meetings to get everyone up to speed on the issues at hand. I am once again serving on Agriculture Finance and Policy, Legacy Finance and the Property Tax Division, and will pass along developments in those committees as warranted throughout the session.
From a broad perspective, the state’s surplus is the topic that’s front and center around the Capitol. It was projected last November to be $7.7 billion, but is quite likely even higher now with additional revenues added the past few months.
The burning question becomes one of what to do with all this extra money the state has collected from taxpayers. For the most part, House Republicans feel the money should be returned to the people, mainly through tax credits and revisions to our tax code. We already have introduced numerous bills to apply surplus funds to tax relief, including by eliminating the state tax on Social Security. We also are looking to return the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund to solvency from its current $1 billion deficit, sparing our businesses from suffering a tax increase.
We need to be careful of is using this one-time surplus windfall to fund programs that become permanent. If that happens, they become part of the base budget and would continue forward even after the surplus is used up.
Other issues in the spotlight this session will be public safety and law enforcement. Some see the need for additional police, while others want to see different methods explored. We need to be careful when making changes in this area, because an idea thought to be necessary in the metro may not work or even be needed here in Greater Minnesota.
There will be work done in the area of cleaner fuels, including E-15 gasoline and a low carbon fuel standard. There needs to be work done to increase the availability of workers for jobs waiting to be filled. Related to that is the lack of childcare that keeps some parents home and out of the work force because they can’t find places for their young children.
I will keep you posted as things unfold this session and I also encourage you to check your local paper for legislative columns I submit. The plan is to submit them every other week during the session, including next week.
For now, have a good weekend and your input, as always, is welcome.
Sincerely,
Paul