Accessibility menu
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
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE FIRST 100 DAYS
When I’m back home in Byron or visiting other towns throughout the area, I often hear the question “So what have you done at the Capitol this year?”
Since we’ve been in St. Paul a bit more than three months now, I thought I’d take an opportunity to review a handful of things the Minnesota House has accomplished during the first 100 days of the 2011 legislative session.
First and foremost, the Minnesota House has approved a balanced budget that eliminates our projected $5.1 billion budget deficit. The $34 billion House budget proposes to cut taxes by $300 million, fund our priorities, reform government and live within our means.
Government spending is growing at unsustainable rates, which is why the House chose to reduce projected spending by $3.6 billion and forced state agencies to reduce their budgets by 15 percent over the next two years.
The House also reduced income taxes for all Minnesotans so they could keep more of their hard earned money. For business owners, the House passed legislation that creates an up-front benefit for those utilizing the sales tax exemption for capital equipment purchases. It also modifies the research and development tax credit and dedicates withholdings for science and technology.
Our balanced budget plan starkly contrasts Governor Dayton’s position, who wants to increase taxes on all Minnesotans. Dayton’s $4 billion job killing tax increase would expand government programs by 27 percent over the next two years. There are roughly five weeks left before session ends, and with Republicans adamantly opposed to tax increases of any kind, I’m anticipating an interesting budget negotiation showdown between legislative leadership and the governor.
While we disagree with the Governor on how to balance the budget, we have found some common ground with him in areas of government reform. Earlier this session, the Governor signed our bill which streamlines the permitting process in Minnesota. Over the years, we’ve heard many horror stories of how business owners chose not to relocate here due to our slow and uncertain permitting process. In some previous cases, that state authorization took more than a year. Under the new law, it will take 150 days or less.
The governor also signed an education reform bill into law. This proposal opens up teaching for professional experts in subjects like science, math and engineering, and creates an alternative pathway for these experts to become teachers while they are working toward their full teaching license.
The House has also passed several other reform proposals that would save countless millions to state taxpayers, including government consolidation measures, welfare reform and fraud detection, and a reduction in the state workforce through attrition and retirements. Hopefully, these bills will also be met with the Governor’s approval before session ends in mid-May.
News Items
- Legislative Update from Rep. Duane Quam - (Posted: Jan 11 2013 3:55PM)
- CLARIFYING MISCONCEPTIONS ON SEVERAL BILLS - (Posted: 2012-04-05 00:00:00)
- SIGNIFICANT BILLS BEING PASSED OFF HOUSE FLOOR - (Posted: 2012-03-30 00:00:00)
- Archived News Items
- Subscribe to RSS News Feeds
- Read more about RSS.