Dear Neighbor,
Greetings from St. Paul, where House Democrats have begun their parade of omnibus finance bills that raise state spending by 40 percent, blow through the state’s $19 billion surplus and increase taxes, to boot.
Bills related to higher education and the Legacy Amendment were the first two omnibus packages to come to the House floor and they are among the smaller finance proposals we’ll see this session. Expect the real monstrosities to start surfacing next week, including a package of environment/energy provisions that makes energy in our state even less affordable, less reliable, and less safe.
I’m sure I will have much, much, much more to say on those budget bills – along with notes on my unwavering defense of our Second Amendment rights – as things unfold.
For now:
Zero-interest disaster loans available
How it started:
How it went (image below courtesy the Patriot News):
The Rural Finance Authority Board has declared an emergency for all 87 counties in the State of Minnesota in response to this winter’s excessive snow and winds. This makes zero-interest Disaster Recovery Loans available for Minnesota farmers whose operations have sustained physical property damage or loss of livestock since January 2023.
The Disaster Recovery Loan Program offers affordable financing to clean up, repair, or replace farm structures and replace livestock that may have been destroyed due to high winds and the weight of snow, sleet, and ice this year. The funds are available to farmers for expenses not covered by insurance.
Eligible farmers will work with their local lender to secure the loans from the RFA.
More information, including full eligibility requirements, can be found on the Disaster Recovery Loan Program website.
Coincidentally, the House this week passed a bill pertaining to RFA, providing $50 million so the Authority may continue offering valuable services to farmers as the state’s main agricultural lending arm – partnering with private lenders to offer low-interest loans to those eligible.
Elections bill
Minnesota has a long history of bipartisan support for elections bills that come out of this legislature and become law. This bipartisan support goes back decades through governors from three different parties that demanded that election bills that make it to their desk have bipartisan support. Our current governor also has said he expects election bills to be bipartisan.
That is not the case with H.F. 3, a bill related to elections, which the House majority approved yesterday despite zero House Republican support. This bill is quite controversial because it regulates campaign speech, limits engagement in the political process, and threatens election integrity with automatic voter registration when you sign up for a driver’s license … coincidentally, I’m sure, just after the majority changed state law to allow driver’s licenses for illegals.
What’s the recourse after the fact if ballots are mailed to people who shouldn’t receive them? There’s no ability to coordinate with, say, DPS on verification since they can’t check documentation status.
There are a whole lot more questionable provisions in this proposal, which is being called the most partisan elections bill in state history. Minnesotans deserve an election system that makes it easy to vote and hard to cheat but this bill fails miserably on one of those accounts.
Higher education bill
The higher education package that was approved Wednesday provides $4.2 billion to the state’s public colleges, universities and financial aid programs in the next biennium. This is a $650 million (18.5%) increase for the next two years at a time universities across the state are experiencing an average 6-7% drop in enrollment.
Demand is declining so we pour more taxpayer money into it? This can only mean that we are funding systems, not students. It is a completely backward approach and a mentality only bureaucrats would take.
Instead, let’s focus on ensuring we’re getting maximum return on these tax dollars by helping students achieve and meet our evolving workforce demands to, in turn, lift our statewide economy. Let’s prioritize funding students’ education and keeping them safe, not paying executives.
Have a good weekend and please stay in touch.
Sincerely,
Shane