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State Representative Tim Sanders
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-4226
For more information contact: Austin Bleess 651-296-5529
NEWS COLUMN
THE LEGISLATURE IS STARTING TO PASS OMNIBUS BILLS
By Tim Sanders
State Representative
The Legislature has passed three omnibus bills so far this legislative session. Omnibus bills are the major bills that contain the finance measures for the state. These bills are the backbone of what keeps the state government running and funds all areas of state government, such as education, transportation, and public safety. The three omnibus bills that we have passed so far are the omnibus economic development and housing bill, omnibus environment and natural resources bill, and the omnibus transportation finance bill.
The omnibus economic development bill sadly did not focus on economic development. The spending in the bill would have done little to promote the priority of job growth in our state. In fact the bill would hurt jobs by imposing a permanent tax increase on employers. It is a 2-year increase of 40 percent. Raising taxes on job creators right now will hurt our economy and kill jobs. When our current unemployment rate is over 8 percent in Minnesota this could be a devastating blow.
The bill also gave a bailout to the city of St. Paul. This bailout would have forgiven some of the debt the city owes the state. The money would have been used by the city to build a smaller hockey rink next to the Excel Center called The Pond. Building professional sports arenas is not a priority for Minnesotans. This provision was the tipping point that caused the Governor to veto the entire bill.
There were great opportunities for the omnibus environment bill to reform and provide cost savings to state government. Several reform measures were put forth by the governor. One such reform would have merged boards that do similar work into one. But the Majority went the opposite direction of the governor by prohibiting the executive branch from putting the Environmental Quality Board under the purview of the Pollution Control Agency. The conference committee also added a provision prohibiting the merger of two divisions within the DNR until the DNR reports its plan to the Legislature and the Legislature approves.
The omnibus transportation bill also exhibits misplaced priorities. One priority I have heard from people in our district is making sure our roads and bridges are in good shape. Many people have commented about the number of potholes in the roads that don’t seem to get filled. The transportation bill that was passed would actually cut money from the road maintenance fund. It means there is less money in the budget for MN/DOT to fill potholes or plow the roads in the winter.
I voted against all three of these bills. These bills were filled with misplaced priorities. Listening to the people of our district, I know these bills are not what the people want to see. They want to see potholes filled. They want to see government reform taking place. They don’t want to see bailouts handed out on the state level. I will continue to represent the priorities of our district here in St. Paul.
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News Items
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