Dear Neighbor,
After two weeks of marathon floor sessions, all of this year's major spending bills have been passed out of the Minnesota House and work now has transitioned to conference committees, whose members all have been announced. I was one of three House members named to the conference committee on agriculture – along with Sen. Torrey Westom, who was the Republican named to the conference committee from that body.
What was amazing about these budget bills – nearly all of which passed on party-line votes – was the amount of new spending they call for. Our current state budget contains just over $52 billion in expenditures, whereas the new one being put together for the next biennium is up around $70 billion. That's an increase of 35 percent! The state surplus is being used up, but even that's not enough to cover all these projected new expenses. Taxes in various areas are being increased to the tune of $9.5 billion.
I submitted a column to area newspapers which provides more on where things stand in the House on the budget and other issues as we head into the final two weeks before adjournment. Please check your local publications or click here for the full article.
Meanwhile, House Democrats approved legislation Tuesday that will hurt employee wages and damage businesses by establishing a mandatory paid leave program funded by a new tax on employers and workers at a time the state has a $17.5 billion surplus.
I agree there's a need for a program like this, but this one-size-fits-all approach is not the answer. It will negatively impact every small business and worker in the state, not only with a large tax increase, but it will also make it more difficult for businesses to find enough workers to fill their needs at a time we already have a workforce shortage. The Minnesota Chamber of Commerce reports 80 percent of its members already provide paid family leave.
The program (H.F. 2) would cost billions of dollars to get up and running and require as many as 400 new full-time government employees to develop and administrate. This covers virtually every industry in the state – private employers, nonprofits, cities, counties, and school districts – despite objections. It would be funded with a $2.9 billion tax on employers and employees and expands employers’ leave obligations to part-time and temporary employees.
Unlike the Federal Family and Medical Leave Act, which only applies to employers with 50 or more employees, this program would apply to all employers including those with only one employee. Employees can stack leave together, allowing for up to 24 weeks of paid time off per year.
On the other hand, House Republicans have developed a plan which takes a different approach, providing a small-business tax credit to incentivize employers to join the plan. The key difference, he said, is the minority’s plan provides paid family and medical leave benefits for employees without job-crushing mandates and new taxes.
The House Republican proposal provides a small business tax credit to incentivize employers to join the plan. Minnesotans may opt into the program for $5 per week if an employer does not join by using the parameters of the state’s paid leave policy, leveraging the power of the state’s 10s of thousands of employees. Employees who are satisfied with current benefits offered by their employers can keep them without being forced onto a government-run program.
The House Republican plan was offered as an amendment to H.F. 2 on Tuesday. Unfortunately, House Democrats voted down that offering before approving their own bill, sending it to the Senate for action.
Watch for more news from the Capitol soon and, as always, your input is welcome.
Sincerely,
Paul