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House GOP offers tab fee hike in effort to break transportation deadlock

House Speaker Kurt Daudt outlines the Republican counteroffer to Gov. Mark Dayton’s transportation funding package that was revealed Monday. Photo by Paul Battaglia
House Speaker Kurt Daudt outlines the Republican counteroffer to Gov. Mark Dayton’s transportation funding package that was revealed Monday. Photo by Paul Battaglia

House Republicans hoped to move toward a transportation compromise Tuesday morning, offering, for the first time, to support a comprehensive funding plan that would generate new revenue.

The plan — unveiled along with new House budget targets that would spend all but $65 million of the state’s projected $900 million budget surplus on transportation, tax cuts and borrowing — proposes to rework the state’s license tab fee formula to generate an estimated $100 million in additional funding for transportation.

It is the first time House Republicans have expressed openness toward raising new revenue as a way to break the long-running deadlock over long-term transportation funding. Caucus leaders said Minnesotans wouldn't pay the higher fees on their current vehicles. 

House Republican Press Conference 5/17/16

Redirecting General Fund dollars toward roads and bridges remains the backbone of the House Republican’s position, which would use $300 million of the state’s projected surplus in 2017 on roads and bridges and shift motor vehicle-related sales tax revenues from the General Fund to a new transportation fund.

Another $200 million in annual borrowing would add up to $600 million in additional funding for roads and bridges each year, the same figure proposed by Gov. Mark Dayton and Senate DFLers.

READ MORE Dayton offers two transportation funding plans as negotiations continue

Tuesday’s offer still doesn’t include any new funding for Twin Cities metro area transit projects — a key point of disagreement with the governor and Senate leaders, both of whom want to raise by a half-cent a metro area transit-dedicated sales tax.

House Republican leaders, though, said the offer represented a real compromise and concentrates on what they believe is the No. 1 transportation issue facing the state.

“Let’s focus on roads and bridges first,” said House Speaker Kurt Daudt (R-Crown). “That’s everyone’s priority.”

House Minority Leader Paul Thissen (DFL-Mpls) said in a statement the latest Republican offer was “encouraging.” But he said relying on the General Fund for roads and bridges would pit transportation against other needs, like schools. 

Thissen also hit the Republican plan for omitting transit, with Daudt saying there is no support for the proposed Southwest Light Rail line in his caucus, nor a tax increase to boost spending on metro area trains and buses.

“(I)t is discouraging that Republicans stubbornly refuse to invest even a penny in transit, despite calls from business and community leaders that recognize transit must be part of any statewide solution,” Thissen said.

Daudt, Dayton and Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk (DFL-Cook) are scheduled to meet Tuesday afternoon. The Legislature must finish its work by 12:01 a.m. next Monday.
 


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