Accessibility menu
State Representative Jeanne Poppe
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-4193
For more information contact: Sandy Connolly 651-296-8877
NEWS COLUMN
COMPROMISE MARKS END OF 2008 LEGISLATIVE SESSION
The 2008 legislative session ended on Sunday night, marking the end of the most successful legislative session in recent memory. With bipartisan support and compromise, we delivered meaningful health care reform, needed property tax relief, a ground breaking transportation package, and releases Q-Comp dollars to be spent more equitably for K-12 schools. More than that, nursing homes received funding increases, 40,000 new jobs are anticipated, and a $935 million budget deficit was balanced.
The budget solution closed tax loopholes for foreign offshore corporations, utilized a portion of the state's budget reserve, and made a series of strategic, responsible cuts.
The House education funding proposal was accepted as part of the final budget deal. As a result, all K-12 schools in our state will receive an additional per student funding of $51 in 2009 – $30 of which will be ongoing funding dedicated to Minnesota schools from the Permanent School Trust Fund. By providing this bridge funding for 2009, lawmakers are laying the groundwork for long-term education funding reform in the coming legislative session – a proposal capable of completely restructuring education funding in our state and providing all Minnesota students access to a world-class education.
Health care reform delivered this session is the result of over 10 months of hard work, and over 75 health care reform hearings. Lawmakers worked closely with health experts, private practitioners, and the Governor's office to implement nation-leading reform measures that will increase affordability and provide access to coverage for more Minnesotans. The measure includes preventive measures to help curb costly chronic diseases, and as a result, make Minnesota healthier and lower costs. New reforms will also help small employers save money on health care, and streamline the billing process to eliminate unnecessary waste.
Nursing homes are slated to receive a 2 percent cost of living adjustment in 2009, on top of the 2 percent they received in 2008. This represents a $15 million investment over two years, and represents a stable funding source to help them recover from previous cuts. Although this is good news for nursing homes, there remains a need to increase funding for other long-term care facilities.
After over $2 billion in property tax increases since 2003, Minnesotans will finally see property tax relief this year. Lawmakers settled on a compromise to provide $25 million in direct relief to those Minnesotans who need it most with respect to their income. It also implements a 3.9% levy limit indexed for inflation and delivers $60 million in new Local Government Aid to cities and counties.
Legislation I authored for capital investment dollars for our district also passed. Riverland Community College was allocated $2.2 million in the Capital Investment bill, and the Cedar River and Turtle Creek watershed districts will receive $2 million in Reinvest in Minnesota (RIM) money. Additionally, Austin is targeted to receive Department of Natural Resources dollars for flood mitigation.
Permanent licensing regulations for septic system professionals working on individual sewage treatment systems with a flow of 10,000 gallons of water per day or less were established. Current law stating no other license is necessary for these individuals is set to expire in 2010; the new legislation removes the sunset date and makes this requirement permanent. This is particularly useful for replacement of straight - pipe sewer systems, common in southern Minnesota.
In response to the flooding last August in southeastern Minnesota, I worked to develop legislation to create a comprehensive and uniform framework for legislative and executive response to disasters. This became law when the Governor signed it on April 28th. In addition, insurance companies are now required to regularly notify homeowners about whether or not they have flood insurance.
The transportation bill we passed early in the session will invest $6.6 billion into state roads and bridges over the next ten years. Mower County will receive an additional $12.3 million for local transportation projects, Fillmore County will receive an additional $13.4 million, and the city of Austin will get an extra $3.1 million. As a result of this new funding, worrisome transportation projects in our district will be addressed more quickly.
The results of the 2008 legislative session appear mostly positive, however, there are still gaps between the needs and resources available. To provide the balance needed to erase the budget deficit, funding was cut to hospitals, the court system and higher education. With a projected $2 billion in budget deficit projected for 2009 - 2010 and without plans for any new resources, Minnesotans will again see a struggle over how to address our needs.
For more information on the over 4,000 bills considered by the Legislature this year, go to www.house.mn. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. I can be reached at 1-888-682-3180 or 1-651-296-4193, by mail at 487 State Office Building, 100 Martin Luther King Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155 or via e-mail at rep.jeanne.poppe@house.mn.
News Items
- POPPE SELECTED AS AGRICULTURE POLICY COMMITTEE CHAIR - (Posted: 2012-11-16 00:00:00)
- Rep. Jeanne Poppe Encourages High School Juniors to Apply for Minnesota House of Representatives Page Program - Application Deadline is November 19th - (Posted: 2012-11-12 00:00:00)
- HORMEL INSTITUTE EXPANSION SIGNED INTO LAW - 2012 legislative session adjourns sine die - (Posted: 2012-05-11 00:00:00)
- Archived News Items
- Subscribe to RSS News Feeds
- Read more about RSS.