Dear Friends and Neighbors,
I hope you have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend, as we take time to remember those brave Americans who gave their lives in service to our nation.
Here is an update from Saint Paul.
2017 Session Ends with Historic Tax and Transportation Legislation Passed
The House and Senate concluded their work this week, passing compromise budget bills agreed on by the Legislature and Governor Dayton. I am pleased we were able to pass a comprehensive budget that funds our shared priorities including schools and transportation, while also providing more than $650 million in tax relief for the hardworking taxpayers of our state.
Both transportation and tax relief were top priorities this session for House Republicans. Our tax bill which includes relief for seniors on social security, families, college graduates with student loan debt, farmers, and Minnesota businesses is the largest tax cut for hardworking Minnesotans in nearly two decades. The transportation package we passed is the largest investment in road and bridge infrastructure in our state’s history without a harmful gas tax or license tab fee increase.
Other highlights include an education bill that puts more money into every classroom, overhauls our broken teacher licensure system and repeals the outdated “last in, first out” policy to ensure that our schools can keep great teachers in the classroom. State government finance, health and human services, bonding, public safety, higher education, agriculture and environment are among the other bills passed to conclude the session, and those bills include a number of great provisions that will help citizens and communities statewide.
In all, I am glad we got our work done, found compromise in a divided government, and were able to pass historic transportation and tax relief bills for Minnesotans.
Chip A. Imker Memorial Highway Bill Signed into Law
I am pleased to share that legislation I authored to designate a segment of Trunk Highway 65 in Isanti County as the Chip A. Imker Memorial Highway has been signed into law by Governor Dayton.
Imker, who was a Cambridge firefighter, tragically passed away in a training accident in 2011 at the age of 35. I am thankful for the strong bipartisan support the bill received, and am glad for his family and community that we were able to get this change made at the Legislature.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Sincerely,
Brian