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State Representative Paul Anderson
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-4317
For more information contact: House GOP Communications 651-296-5520
NEWS COLUMN
Ag and vets, K-12 bills pass House
By State Rep. Paul Anderson
A day on the House floor spanning 14 hours produced several major bills May 13. Among the notable pieces of legislation passed by the House of Representatives were the agriculture and veterans bill, the K-12 education bill, and a lights-on bill which allows government to avoid a total shutdown if the Legislature doesn’t balance the budget by the July 1 deadline.
The ag bill came back from conference committee with the Dairy Development Program re-instated, although at a lower funding level than in past years. Another piece of good news is that Livestock Investment Grant Program funding remained at the same level as last biennium.
A long-standing commitment to Minnesota’s ethanol industry remains part of the bill, although $6 million in producer payments over the next two years have been postponed. Another $12 million will be paid to ethanol plants in each year of the two-year budget cycle.
The veterans’ portion of the legislation remained mostly the same as when originally passed by the House.
The education funding bill for the state’s K-12 school districts contained a few positive aspects, but overall faces an uncertain future from the Governor. Its funding remained flat, one of the few areas of state government to see no cuts.
Another positive aspect of the bill that’s especially important for the private and Catholic schools in our district is the elimination of the provision that would have reduced special education funding for students attending private schools. I had earlier offered two amendments that would have removed this portion of the bill.
A serious flaw in the bill, however, is the elimination of the funding shift to school districts. Although at first glance this would appear to be positive for our state’s schools, the shift saved the state approximately $1.6 billion in the upcoming biennium. There is no mention in the bill how this amount of funding will be made up. It would appear to me that, if the shift is not
put back in the bill, it would necessitate a tax increase. And that’s why it may face a veto from Gov. Pawlenty.
An omnibus higher education bill was also passed out of the House. Highlights include tuition increases at Minnesota colleges and universities of 3 percent over the next two years, a figure reduced by the influx of federal stimulus dollars. I was also glad to see a loan forgiveness program for students in the Veterinary Program at the University of Minnesota included in the bill.
The bonding bill came back from conference quite a lot bigger than when it left the House, mainly because of increased funding for flood relief and recovery. According to Rep. Paul Marquardt, over 400 culverts in Wilkin County were washed out by this spring’s flooding in the Red River Valley. In all, $72 million was set aside for recovery efforts.
Also included in the bill is money for the Alexandria airport and the St. Cloud Civic Center remodeling project. The total price tag for the bonding bill is $300 million.
The lights-on bill was passed to ensure that the state wouldn’t face a shutdown in case the Legislature can't reach a budget agreement by July 1. Funding of state government operations would continue to operate at levels set the previous two years.
The problem is that revenues are coming in at lower levels than two years ago, and if spending isn’t reduced, we would face the prospect later this year of running out of money or having to increase taxes.
Two other bills passed during that same marathon floor session were a compromise dental therapist bill and another pertaining to rural health cooperatives.
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Rep. Anderson encourages constituents to contact his new office with input regarding any state legislative issue. He can be reached on the web at www.house.mn/13A and via email at rep.paul.anderson@house.mn. To contact Anderson by phone, call (651) 296-4317. Mail can be sent to Rep. Paul Anderson, 239 State Office Building, 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, Minnesota 55155.
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