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State Representative Duane Quam
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-9236
For more information contact: Jason Wenisch 651-296-2317
NEWS COLUMN
STATE AGENCY VALUE INITIATIVE APPROVED BY MINNESOTA HOUSE
Recently I had the opportunity to debate my first bill before the full Minnesota House, which was an experience I won’t soon forget. You might recall the legislation - The State Agency Value Initiative (SAVI) - which I discussed in a previous column.
SAVI encourages innovation and creative cost savings by state employees, and the reward is allowing 50% of any unspent funds by an agency to be set aside for future projects. The only caveat is that projects must not create future obligations and must support the agency’s mission.
The goal of the program is to prevent an agency from wasting money at the end of a budget cycle on items it might not need. Many groups believe that if they don’t use the revenue they’ve been allocated by the end of the year, they will receive a lowered amount of funding during the next budget. My idea was to allow half of what the agency had remaining to be placed into a reserve fund, and then let the workers decide what to use it for at a later date.
I was happy my first bill was so well received by House lawmakers, as it was approved by a strong, bipartisan 120-7 vote. But I’m most pleased that the idea for this bill came about due to input at a constituent meeting. My thanks go to the employees of the RCTC college faculty union, because without their willingness to find more efficient ways to spend resources and empower workers, none of this would have been possible.
The State Agency Value Initiative must now be approved by the Minnesota Senate before it can be submitted to Governor Dayton for his signature.
In other State Capitol news, our committees are working at a brisk pace towards crafting finance bills that will help balance Minnesota’s budget. With a projected $5.1 billion budget deficit to eliminate, the Minnesota House is proposing significant budget reductions and will pass a bill that will ultimately slow the growth of government spending to five percent.
All of our committees were given a budget target and several, including the Health and Human Services, Taxes, State Government Finance, Agriculture, Jobs, and Higher Education, have finalized their proposals. I expect all of these to be debated on the floor of the Minnesota House within the next week or two, and I will keep you updated on their progress.
As lawmakers have many important decisions to make in the next few weeks, I am eager to hear your opinions on how you believe I should vote on topics that are likely going to be debated. One of the best ways you can do this is by filling out my session survey. Before long, you will receive my survey inserted in this newspaper, and I’d like to strongly encourage you to fill it out and return it to me. Or, if you’d like to save a stamp and take the survey online, please visit my website at www.house.mn/29A and click on “2011 Legislative Survey.”
Included are questions ranging from the best way to solve our budget deficit to your opinion on gambling in Minnesota. I look forward to hearing from you soon.
News Items
- Quam Statement on HF956 - Omnibus Energy Bill - (Posted: May 8 2013 9:14AM)
- Capitol Update from Rep. Duane Quam - (Posted: May 3 2013 12:00AM)
- House Moves Ahead with Damaging Changes to Education and Taxes - (Posted: Apr 26 2013 12:00AM)
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