Dear Neighbor,
Greetings from the House, where this week state officials issued a new economic forecast for Minnesota and it projects a $17.5 billion surplus for the new biennium.
More on that in a moment. First, I want to thank all the people who attended the Second Amendment-rights town hall meeting I co-hosted with Sen. Steve Green last weekend in Park Rapids. It was the second town hall meeting we’ve conducted on this subject and, once again, there was a huge turnout of a couple-hundred people.
Thank you to everyone who showed up and, if you were unable to attend, there’s good news: Sen. Green and I are co-hosting a third town hall meeting on the Second Amendment 11 a.m. this Saturday at the Lean to Tavern in Bejou (523 Main St.). Here is a link to a previous newsletter I sent with more background information and an important call to action if you want to get up to speed.
As for other news:
New economic forecast
The bottom-line surplus figure of $17.5 billion issued Monday in an updated economic report for Minnesota remains in line with the last full forecast, issued in early December. That said, the state received almost $1.5 billion in increased revenue during that span, but those additional dollars were canceled out because this forecast factored for inflation for the first time in decades. The surplus projected in this week’s forecast would be more like $19 billion using November’s metrics.
Either way, the state is still collecting far more tax dollars than it needs, and we should address this ongoing imbalance. It’s not right for the state to be swimming in a huge pot of surplus revenue, especially as people are dealing with higher prices across the board. Our top priorities this session should be to provide immediate relief – starting with fully eliminating the state tax on Social Security – while also making corrections to stop our state from making massive over-collections like this in the future. There is no reason for our state to have almost $18 billion more from the taxpayers than our budget calls for.
Call to action
Just hours after receiving the updated economic forecast, House Republicans moved to fast-track legislation fully eliminating the state tax on Social Security, but House Democrats voted against it. Democrats spent a lot of time last summer and fall saying they supported ending the state tax on Social Security, but now they are threatening to once again go back on their word. If it feels like we’ve been here before, it’s because we have. As concerning as it is to see this unifying issue take a back seat to more controversial subjects through the first eight weeks of this legislative session, it is even more concerning to see our seniors being treated this way.
The list of states that still tax Social Security income is down to just 11. I urge you to reach out to members of the Democrat majorities in the House and Senate to tell them it’s time to do the right thing by ending this tax in Minnesota.
Republican “Give It Back” tax plan
House and Senate Republicans responded to the forecast news by unveiling our “Give It Back” tax plan, which provides $13 billion over two years in permanent tax cuts and one-time rebates.
The package features tax relief benefiting Minnesotans both now and in the long-term, such as:
- Lower first and second tier rates
- Full elimination of Social Security tax
- $1,800 tax credit per child
- Property tax relief
- $5 billion in rebates
It is time to get serious about giving the surplus back to the taxpayers so they can afford their lives in the face of historic inflation driving up the costs of everyday necessities.
Reading RESET
With half of Minnesota’s students unable to read proficiently at grade level and no real science-based reading plan in sight to address this urgent problem head on, House and Senate Republicans announced their “Reading RESET” plan this week to address our state’s reading crisis.
The plan would establish a special revenue fund, not unlike a disaster relief fund, from which schools can apply to cover costs related to aligning their curriculum and instructional practices to the science of Reading.
Reading RESET has three primary components: funding for schools that would like to replace the ineffective literacy materials they are currently using and purchase proven Science of Reading curriculum and instructional materials and books; funding for teacher training and professional development in the Science of Reading, and funding for tutoring to help struggling students who have fallen behind in reading.
This is not a partisan issue and we owe it to our children to help them achieve success in the classroom and beyond.
Sincerely,
Matt