Dear Neighbor,
Greetings from the House. Here’s a look at some of this week’s notes from the Capitol:
Partial fix to tax bill
Many Minnesotans who are preparing to file their income taxes likely will see their returns improve because the House passed legislation Monday to fix a Democrat error in last year’s omnibus tax bill. Without this correction, the Department of Revenue estimates it would cost Minnesotans an additional $352 million starting in tax year 2024.
On the other hand, many other Minnesotans are poised to suffer an unnecessary tax hit because Democrats decided to NOT fix another one of their errors in last year’s omnibus tax bill. They chose not to fix the effective date of a Net Operating Loss provision, which will cost Minnesotans $15 million. They chose not to fix the NOL date despite having agreed-upon language that would provide a technical fix and eliminate the unnecessary burden – effectively another tax increase resulting from a session where Minnesota had a record surplus.
The Democrat tax chairs in the House and Senate even co-signed a letter to state revenue officials indicating they would fix this problem at their earliest opportunity … only to blow it when it mattered most. Imagine the gall it takes to make a mistake that’s going to cost Minnesota workers $15 million, tell the bean counters you’re going to fix it and then intentionally leave it unresolved.
Would you like to know why this happened? Because Gov. Tim Walz himself issued the order to stand down and not fix their $15 million mistake. Why? Because last year the Democrats blew a $17.5 billion surplus, increased state spending by 40 percent and now have the state staring at a budget deficit in the next biennium.
The governor and fellow Democrats are simply punting on this issue, keeping their fingers crossed the upcoming February economic forecast, set for release next week, will produce a windfall that can help them cover their tracks.
The Democrat approach is reckless, unaffordable and keeps digging a bigger hole by the day.
Burnsville tragedy
The deaths of two Burnsville police officers and a first responder have left Minnesotans shaken and saddened. This tragedy appears to be yet another indictment of Minnesota’s failure to hold known criminals accountable. For too many, it's a gun violence problem. For those who understand that humans – not objects – bear accountability, it's a gun violence problem.
As noted in last week’s newsletter, I recently engaged in a deeper conversation with a liberal activist, and domestic abuse was central to our discussion. This situation in Burnsville, unfortunately, could serve as the latest example of a deadly scenario that could have been avoided had a more serious approach been taken upstream.
Precinct caucuses next week
This year’s precinct caucuses will take place at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 27. These meetings provide Minnesotans with the opportunity to participate in grassroots politics. The more people we have involved in this process, the better and I hope you can attend. The Minnesota Secretary of State website has a statewide Caucus Finder page to help citizens find their meeting locations.
Have a good weekend and, as always, please let me know how I can help.
Sincerely,
Walter