ST. PAUL, MN—House Republicans wasted no time getting to work on key session priorities, including health care and tax relief. House File 2, which will result in $21.7 million in tax relief for 220,000 Minnesota tax filers by conforming Minnesota's tax code to the federal tax code, passed Thursday on a vote of 130-0.
Republicans also moved to declare an urgency and pass The 2017 Health Care Emergency Aid and Access bill, HF1, which would have provided premium relief, extended access to doctors for continuity of care, and begun to reform the individual market. Democrats blocked the measure, despite agreeing days earlier to suspend the rules in order to expedite premium relief for Minnesotans.
"Today we tried to take a major step toward addressing the MNsure crisis, but were blocked by the House DFL,” said Rep. Josh Heintzeman (R- Nisswa). “While I’m disappointed that the MNsure fix will take longer than it could have, I’m glad that we were able to pass $21.7 million in immediate tax relief for Minnesotans through adopting federal tax conformity.”
Without quick approval of the federal tax conformity bill (HF2), Minnesotans who file their taxes early could face higher tax bills, a situation all lawmakers wanted to avoid. The Department of Revenue has said that in order to avoid tax filing complications, the proposal needs to be signed into law before January 11. The Senate is expected to pass tax conformity in time to meet the January 11th deadline.
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