Talking with local citizens during Bemidi Day at the Capitol this Wednesday. Click here for video of me, checkered vest and all, making a pitch for Bemidji on the House floor and recognizing visitors from our region in the House gallery.
Dear Neighbor,
Thank you to all the people from District 5A who came to St. Paul to participate in Bemidji Day at the Capitol this Wednesday. People definitely noticed the red-and-black plaid vests we wore at the Capitol to commemorate the day and at least one other House member asked where they could get their hands on one.
One thing to note is that, while it officially is known as “Bemidji Day,” people from other parts of the district also were in St. Paul. Some folks from Walker attended a committee hearing to discuss a bill I drafted to study upgrades for State Highway 371. The bill advanced, with some amendments I made to the bill along the way included.
First, I amended the bill to make economic and environmental impacts featured components of the study, which would determine the feasibility of improving the Paul Bunyan Expressway from Jenkins to Cass Lake. The options for upgrades could include creating bypass lanes on the existing two-lane road, widening the expressway to four lanes, or other to-be-determined methods of clearing congestion.
The purpose of this bill is to learn more about our options and part of that involves taking a closer look at some issues local citizens have raised. The fact people from the district came down to the Capitol and shared their thoughts on the bill during the hearing shows how valuable a study would be in providing a baseline of information to consider. People have passionate opinions and my goal is to find a solution we can agree on before we even think about putting a shovel in the ground.
I also am working to amend the price tag for the study, from $4 million provided in the bill to something in the lower $1 million range. MnDOT officials have indicated the cost shown in the bill is excessive, partially due to the fact a stretch of the road already has been studied during previous construction.
The bill (H.F. 1437) was approved by the House Transportation and Regional Governance Policy Committee and referred to the House Transportation Finance Committee. Time is going to be tight as far as meeting House deadlines with this bill. The main thing is we are starting this discussion so we can do what is right by the folks in our region.
In other news, Minnesota Management & Budget on Tuesday issued an updated state economic forecast and it projects a $1.65 billion surplus through the 2018-19 biennium. This is an increase of about $250 million over the previous full forecast released in December.
This healthy bottom line will help us as we work to set a responsible new state budget that focuses priorities such as tax relief, roads and bridges, education and care for seniors. The thing I want to emphasize is this surplus exists because taxpayers have been overcharged. Tax relief should be a core piece of the next state budget we put in place.
We also need to make sure the overall spending total is a responsible amount. The governor proposes raising state spending by around 10 percent, which is too much. Officials from MMB report that significant risks remain, especially at the federal level where international trade and health care changes could impact us.
I will circle back as things develop with the overall budget. Until next time, your thoughts on the issues always are welcome.
Sincerely,
Matt