Dear Neighbors,
Yesterday the Minnesota House finally had an opportunity to vote on the House Majority Capital Investment plan after having been released on Tuesday night. The bill was far short of the proposals put forth by the Senate and by Governor Dayton. With low interest rates, and demonstrated needs at places such as our higher education institutions, wastewater treatment plants, and correctional facilities, to name a few, this year is a prime opportunity to pass a significant bonding bill.
Unfortunately, as has tended to do lately, partisan politics has reared its ugly head. The bill weighed heavily in favor of projects in the GOP districts, and this was unfortunate because a bonding bill requires a 3/5 supermajority to pass. For a real shot at passage into law, the bill should have certainly been balanced better geographically.
Not only was the bill not geographically balanced, but it was tilted away from some of the most urgent priorities for the state. For instance, renovation of the Minnesota Security Hospital in St. Peter, where some of the most vulnerable Minnesotans are cared for, wasn’t fully funded. Additionally, the Department of Transportation’s top priority for grade separation at rail crossings, where crude oil passes through and the potential for catastrophe is high, was ignored. The bill also appropriates $70 million for four trunk highway projects, none of which are in districts represented by DFL legislators, and it skips over four higher priority projects at campuses in Bemidji, Hibbing, Rochester, and Winona, which are all DFL districts, in favor of lower priority projects for MnSCU in Republican districts.
It is difficult to support something so divisive. The Capital Investment bill is historically one of the most bipartisan pieces of major legislation the entire Minnesota Legislature produces every year because it requires a super majority of both the Senate and the House. My colleagues in the majority will need to be do a better job of working in a bipartisan manner.
The bill did not pass the House and there was already another bill set to be worked on to find a compromise between the House and Senate. I look forward to seeing that come back and be able to support it.
This isn’t the only area in which we’ve regrettably had our eyes off the ball. Wednesday, with less than a few days to go in the session, we debated allowing blaze pink clothing for hunters for the second time in the same week. We’re waiting on a transportation bill, tax bill with important economic development policy for our district and many other important bills to continue the positive economic growth in our area. We have great opportunity to keep things moving in the right direction instead of regressing to worse times. We need to work on the real priorities for all Minnesotans rather than policies benefitting a few.
I look forward to a positive ending for us all and we will keep you posted. It’s an honor to serve in St. Paul.
Sincerely,
Dan Schoen