Dear Neighbors,
One of the major tasks for the Legislature this coming session will be passage of a bonding bill. Traditionally considered during the even year of a biennium, the bonding bill raises proceeds to fund capital improvements of our public infrastructure including our higher education institutions, transit systems, prisons, parks, trails, other natural resources, and wastewater systems, just to name a few.
Ahead of the session, $3.7 billion in various requests were submitted ($2.7 billion were from state agencies and almost $1 billion were from local units of government). Minnesota Management and Budget has comprehensive details about the requests, as well as Gov. Dayton’s recommendations, at their website. Nonpartisan House Public Information Services has put together a map of the proposed projects, and you can access that here.
I’d also like to share with you a video recently produced by House Info which lays out the extremely competitive process these agencies must go through as their projects are scrutinized and are considered for inclusion in the bonding bill. Pursuant to the state constitution, any bonding bill requires a three-fifths super majority of both bodies of the Legislature, as well as a signature from the Governor. This higher threshold means that the package of projects must gain bipartisan support, and ensures all projects have statewide and regional significance.
As for me, I’ll be fighting for proposed projects at Minnesota State – Mankato, South Central College, the City of Mankato and of course the Minnesota Security Hospital in St. Peter. I hope this information is helpful toward understanding what goes into one of the major pillars of the 2016 Legislative Session. Please feel free to contact me with any input or questions about this process.
Sincerely,
Jack Considine
State Representative