Dear Neighbors,
On Tuesday, House Democrats released details of their budget proposal. Not surprisingly, their budget dramatically grows the size of government. They also confirmed that they plan to increase taxes despite a $1.6 billion budget surplus and billions coming to Minnesota from the federal government.
Instead of helping struggling workers and businesses, Democrats are prioritizing tax hikes and growing government. The tax increases in their proposed budget will never become law, and it is tone-deaf to propose them at a time when state government is flush with cash while Minnesotans continue to struggle from forced closures and shutdowns.
When I was elected in 2014, it was my understanding that we shouldn’t play games with people's lives and businesses. The DFL is currently playing games with all of our lives and are not serious about helping Minnesotans, and this is after the Governor has shut down the state for a year.
I am also concerned about how the impact of raising taxes will have on forcing more Minnesotans to leave the state. As more folks leave, jobs and opportunities leave with them as well.
In addition to proposed tax increases, Tax Committee Chair, Paul Marquart, confirmed that DFLers plan to pass only one tax bill. This ensures that important legislation addressing problems with the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Unemployment Insurance (UI) will be caught up in end-of-session budget negotiations. More DFL games.
Minnesotans are waiting for action on these issues and cannot afford to wait. Instead of letting these two bills pass as standalone bills, they will inevitably get caught up in larger budget discussions.
Business taxes were due on March 15th and Minnesotans are filing their taxes right now, and Democrats are doing nothing.
I will have more for you on this budget proposal in the future.
Summer School
This week, DFLers brought a “summer school” funding bill to the House floor. As can be expected, the Democrats’ bill does little to actually put students back in school and instead directs the majority of this funding to state agencies—leaving it up to unelected bureaucrats to determine where the dollars go.
In fact, only 27% of the funds in the bill go toward summer programs for K-12 students to address learning loss, and only 36 percent of the funding in this bill goes directly to schools. Most importantly, significant portions of the funding in this bill have no in-person requirement which is the entire point of funding summer school programming.
House Republicans offered an amendment during Tuesday’s debate that directly addresses the problem and works to put kids in the classroom. While Democrats shovel money to non-profits and bureaucracy, Republicans want to put the dollars directly in the classroom, and directly to in-person learning so students can catch up from Governor Walz's year of keeping schools closed.
This year has been extremely difficult on students as many have had to deal with mental health and emotional issues being out of school. Many have also fallen behind academically. It’s time to get kids back in school and give school districts the resources they need for summer school so students can get caught up.
Staying in Touch
Please do not hesitate to reach out to me to share any thoughts or concerns you may have about state government or the job I'm doing as your representative. It would be great to talk with you. I can be reached by phone at 651-296-8237 or via email at rep.brian.daniels@house.mn.
Have a great weekend,
Brian
8.7.1