Dear Neighbors:
The legislative session ended last night with 70% of the budget - education, health & human services, state government, transportation, taxes, and long-term borrowing for infrastructure (bonding) - still not having been approved. With a budget surplus of more than $1.5 billion, there's no reason for this.
As I've discussed previously, Republican leaders repeatedly cut off negotiations with Governor Dayton (see my legislative updates of May 10 and May 20), spending weeks passing bills that they knew he would veto. All session I’ve worked for a budget that invests in education, transportation, and a clean environment - areas that ensure that every Minnesotan has the opportunity to contribute and to thrive. By contrast, the Republican majorities have prioritized large tax cuts for wealthy estates and out-of-state corporate property owners - a path that would lead to greater inequity and likely future deficits. With this approach, it's no wonder that they weren't able to get a state budget enacted on time.
Governor Dayton has called a brief special session, which started last night at 12:01am and will end tomorrow (Wednesday) at 7:00am. I hope that we can pass better legislation during this special session, though with fewer than 12 hours left, we still haven't seen any bills. I’ll continue to work to keep you updated.
Thank you for the honor of serving our community,
Dave Pinto
State Representative, District 64B
321 State Office Building
(651) 296-4199
www.house.leg.state.mn.us/64b
Sign up for legislative updates at http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/members/join.asp?id=15444