Dear Neighbor,
The House has reached bipartisan agreement on the framework of a new state budget that includes the largest spending reduction in Minnesota history to head off a projected shortfall.
The bottom line is the agreement cuts $4 billion from the current budget, with an additional $1.2 billion reduction in 2026-27. This is essential after Democrats in full control of the Capitol spent the nearly $20 billion surplus, raised taxes by $10 billion and increased the state budget by 40 percent in 2023.
Minnesota faces a $6 billion projected shortfall because the former trifecta made a lot of promises they couldn’t keep. Our state has a spending problem, not a revenue problem, and the only way to get Minnesota on a more affordable track is by cutting spending.
The proposed cuts are significant, but I wish they were even bigger, especially after all the reckless spending of the last two years. We could start making Minnesota more affordable by whacking the monstrosity called Paid Family Medical Leave that’s set to start Jan. 1. Keep on going by axing the new sick time program … the list goes on and on.
There’s just one problem: Democrats still control the governor’s office, the Senate and half the House. With a 67-67 party split in the House, at least one Democrat vote is necessary to pass bills. But they do not want to cut spending to the degree I would prefer to truly right-size our government.
In fact, Democrats would rather raise taxes to cover their tracks for reckless spending than make cuts. Except Republicans oppose tax increases. Just like Democrats can block cuts, we can stop tax increases.
Education is one area of the budget where different approaches will need to be ironed out this session. The governor proposes slashing more than $240 million from education in 2026-27 and another $445 million in 2028-29. This includes cutting merit-based teacher compensation (Q Comp), special education transportation, and non-public pupil support.
Meanwhile, Minnesota students are falling behind, with half unable to read or do math at grade level. All these mandates from the last two years have only made it harder for children to succeed in the classroom and are pushing school districts into shortfalls
It’s time to restore common sense and let schools focus on educating our kids without the divisiveness some people keep pushing. House Republicans have launched the Save Our Schools plan to put an end to excessive micromanagement, costly mandates, and misguided priorities that are failing our K-12 education system.
It should be interesting to see how this unfolds, but we have plenty of time to get our work done and adjourn on time as long as we focus on doing what’s best for Minnesotans instead of playing partisan games.
Capitol Cross destroyed
It’s one thing to not share someone else’s beliefs. It’s an entirely different thing to tear down someone else’s beliefs. Unfortunately, the latter recently happened when a nice display on the Capitol lawn featuring the Cross and the Ten Commandments (above) was destroyed (below). Reports indicate a man in his 30s was cited for the incident.
The destruction happened on Monday. In an odd twist, a new display (below) appeared inside the Capitol two days later, thanking Gov. Tim Walz for “not standing in the way of Satanism in the State Capitol Building. Satan has a special place for you.”
Go ahead and draw your own conclusions on this one:
Have a good weekend and please stay in touch.
Sincerely,
Shane