Accessibility menu
State Representative Kelby Woodard
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-7065
For more information contact:
NEWS RELEASE
WOODARD, GAROFALO WILL FORGO PER DIEM COMPENSATION DURING SPECIAL SESSION
ST. PAUL - A pair of local state representatives said they will decline to receive compensation legislators would be eligible to receive during an anticipated special session.
Reps. Kelby Woodard, R-Belle Plaine, and Pat Garofalo, R-Farmington, both will forgo the $77 in per diem compensation they are allowed to collect when the Legislature is in session.
“I do not feel it is appropriate to receive per diem compensation as we work to finalize our budget,” Woodard said. “Minnesota taxpayers are already struggling to make ends meet in these tough economic times and I cannot ask them to pay me overtime during a special session. ”
The fiscal calendar turns over at the end of June and Gov. Mark Dayton is expected to call a special session so a state budget can be put in place for the upcoming biennium. The governor vetoed the Legislature’s package of finance bills May 24, one day after the 2011 regular session adjourned.
“Not getting a budget agreement with the governor shouldn’t turn into a financial windfall for legislators,” Garofalo said. “We sent the governor a balanced budget with record-high spending and no tax increases, and I’m disappointed that he chose to veto it because it didn’t raise taxes. But the fact is he did and that means there will be a special session.”
A budget solution hinges on finding resolution in these two approaches: The Legislature’s proposal allows for a modest 6-percent spending growth in the upcoming biennium, while remaining within the $34 billion in projected state revenue. The governor favors spending $1.8 billion beyond that threshold, raising taxes to help pay for it.
-30-
News Items
- Woodard prioritizes school funding - (Posted: Jan 11 2013 2:43PM)
- Forecast reveals results, challenges - (Posted: 2012-12-06 00:00:00)
- Woodard bill to fix sex offender appeal glitch signed in to law - (Posted: 2012-04-23 00:00:00)
- Archived News Items
- Subscribe to RSS News Feeds
- Read more about RSS.