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State Representative David Dill
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-2190
For more information contact: Sandy Connolly 651-296-8877
Press/News Releases
6700 STATE WORKERS KEEP WORKING AND STATE PARKS TO STAY OPEN Bakk/Dill play key role in solution
St. Paul, MN – Thanks to the efforts of two area legislators, there is good news out of St. Paul today. Representative David Dill (DFL-Crane Lake) and Senator Tom Bakk (DFL-Cook) have succeeded in getting a significant Agriculture, Environment and Natural Resources Bill passed, keeping state parks open for the Fourth of July weekend.
"I'm very pleased that we were able to reach compromise and get this done in a timely manner for this holiday week-end," said Dill.
"Now people across the state can continue to enjoy our state parks, workers can keep working and visitors can get their license to go fishing."
Dill gives much of the credit to Senator Bakk, for his excellent negotiations skills as Chair of the Conference Committee.
"Senator Bakk has demonstrated his leadership with his work on this bill," said Dill. "He has been a great mentor and I benefited a lot from observing his negotiating skills."
The bill funds the operation of state agencies at the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Zoological Board, all DNR divisions, including Forest Management, Ecological Services, Enforcement, Minnesota Conservation Corps, the Science Museum, Department of Agriculture, the AURI, Board of Animal Health, Energy and Telecommunications, Weights and Measures, Minnesota Housing Finance, Explore Minnesota, Historical Society, Art Board, Public Utilities Commission and the IRRRB.
In addition to keeping the parks open, there is significant funding included in this bill for area projects. There is a $300,000 grant to complete construction of the Mesabi Station along the 132-mile Mesabi Trail. There is also funding for the establishment of a boat launch and ramp at Horseshoe Bay in Cook County.
The city of Tower will receive iron mining tax proceeds in FY2006 for the purpose of implementation of the East Two Rivers Marina and Harbor project in and near the city of Tower, improving access from Lake Vermillion to the downtown Tower business district and community. The amount available will be approximately $2 million.
Dill's proposal for drilling mining samples at the Tower-Soudan Mine was awarded a $250,000 grant. These samples will be used to compete for a Deep Underground Science Experimental Laboratory (DUSEL) that is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.
"To be able to compete for this project is very important to our region," said Dill. "This very worthwhile research would put us on the cutting edge of technology and would bring real money into our economy."
Provisions regarding the use of ATV's were also included in the final bill. $50,000 is appropriated from the All-Terrain Vehicle Account to do a feasibility study of revising the Northshore Trail master plan for use by all-terrain vehicles. The bill maintains that state land lying north of State Hwy. 2 will maintain their "managed" status for ATV use. (Managed means that state lands are open for ATV use unless posted closed.)
Overall, this bill reduces the potential for off-highway vehicle abuse by increasing training and penalties and creating a way for more OHV riders to comply with the law.
The bill is also good for what's missing-cuts to Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT). "We have one of the highest indexes of public land in the state in our district," said Dill. "It's a major accomplishment that we were able to convince the Legislature and Governor that the state should continue to pay its full real estate tax bill on tax forfeited lands."
"Cutting PILT would have serious financial impact on northern counties and likely lead to increased property taxes to cover county expenses of managing state-owned tax-forfeited lands," said Dill. "St. Louis County has more than 900,000 acres of these types of lands."
The bill also creates an annual statewide $10 per year snowmobile trail pass, for snowmobiles operated on grant-in-aid snowmobiles trails, with the revenue dedicated to snowmobile trails operated by local snowmobile clubs.
Dill would also like to compliment the Republican members of the House for understanding the resources of the Bakk/Dill legislative district. "They came through for us and gave us the financial leverage we need to get and complete significant projects in our area," said Dill.
"Today being June 30th, even with passage of this bill, we are going to work late into the night to resolve funding stalemates regarding education, health care and transportation, the three largest remaining issues affecting all Minnesotans," said Dill.
News Items
- Budget Forecast: Good news for this year, bad for the coming two Fiscal crisis in Washington creates uncertainty and concerns - (Posted: Dec 7 2012 12:00AM)
- MOLPUS LANDS STATUS QUO FOR NOW - (Posted: 2012-10-18 00:00:00)
- Rep. David Dill encourages hunters and trappers to apply for wolf license - (Posted: 2012-08-17 00:00:00)
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