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Legislative News and Views - Rep. Jeanne Poppe (DFL)

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Legislative Update: Budget forecast and Sunday sales

Thursday, March 2, 2017

Greetings,

We’re into our third month of session and “March Madness” is right around the corner up here.

On Tuesday, Minnesota Management and Budget released its February budget forecast. It showed an economy growing at a moderate pace along with a $1.65 billion budget surplus.

The positive metrics are definitely good news, but we know not all Minnesotans are feeling the benefits. I’m ready to continue working with Gov. Dayton and my fellow legislators to build a shared vision of economic prosperity for all Minnesotans.

We often hear the argument that a surplus is a result of taxes being too high. But according to a study by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, Minnesota has one of the highest “tax fairness” ratings in the country. Even more recently, U.S. News and World Report named our state the third-best state in the nation.

MAELC appointment

My appointment to the Minnesota Agricultural Education Leadership Council was finalized on Tuesday. The MAELC is a 17-member legislative council dedicated to improving Ag Education in Minnesota at all levels. I have been on this council since 2012 and will now be serving as the ranking minority member from the House of Representatives. I’m very excited to continue my work with this group.

Sunday sales

Earlier this week, the Senate passed its version of the bill allowing Sunday liquor sales. It’s slightly different from the one the House passed last week so the vote we take will be whether or not to “concur” (agree to) the different wording. It is anticipated this will happen and soon the bill will be sent to the Governor for his signature.

I voted ‘yes’ for repealing the ban on Sunday liquor sales this year; it’s a consumer-driven issue and although there remains concern about the ongoing impact for those who are in the industry, the greater amount of support from the public showed how one issue can be influenced when people get engaged. With this legislation behind us, we will be able to concentrate our efforts on the more pressing issues of setting the state budget.

4-H Alums, “Raise Your Hand”

If you’re a 4-H Alum, you can follow this link to “Raise Your Hand” and show your 4-H pride. More importantly, raising your hand is a vote towards a $20,000, $10,000 or $5,000 award for our state. This is a great opportunity to help bring the same opportunities you had to our next generation of 4-H’ers.

As always, feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns on the topics important to you. I hope you’re able to enjoy the warmer temperatures this weekend!

Sincerely,

Jeanne Poppe

State Representative