ST. PAUL – Gov. Mark Dayton on Wednesday vetoed the supplemental budget bill and the tax conformity/school funding bill approved by the Legislature last weekend, blocking the first income tax cut in nearly two decades and denying funding to help deputy registrars hurt by the MNLARS mess, to help avert a 7-percent cut for disability services, improve school safety and more.
“It’s hard to believe a governor would go this far to put partisan politics ahead of doing what’s right for Minnesotans,” said Rep. Chris Swedzinski, R-Ghent. “These were bipartisan bills that deserved to be enacted, but now Minnesotans will never realize the benefits of all the good work we did on them this session. It is interesting that the governor failed to provide a clear, concise response when reporters asked him today about his chief objections to the bills. It doesn’t look like he has a legitimate answer, or at least one he would admit to the public.”
Swedzinski said that in the final week of the legislative session, lawmakers addressed nearly 70 percent of the specific concerns outlined by the governor and provided up to $84 million in new funding for schools – $225 million in total when flexibility measures are added – meeting the governor more than halfway on his key priorities and concerns.
-30-