By Rep. Paul Anderson
A wide range of topics was discussed at our series of town hall meetings held this past Saturday.
At each location, the budget surplus was talked about and many wondered how the $1 billion would be spent. There are two ways of accomplishing that, with one being increased spending, while the other is reducing taxes. Whether you spend a dollar or cut taxes by the same amount, both would do the same thing to the budget surplus, that is, they each would reduce it by a dollar. Cutting taxes means less revenue for the state, which has the same net result on the budget as spending more.
In Melrose, where voters may be deciding a school building referendum in the near future, a question arose concerning a potential change in tax law. Currently, all agricultural land is levied for capital referendums, but a provision in the tax bill still being debated would change that. If approved by the Legislature and signed into law by the governor, a state credit would apply to 50 percent of the levy on ag land for that type of referendum.
In Sauk Centre, two business owners expressed their concern with the state’s complicated sales tax law. There are so many exceptions to the tax, they said, it becomes difficult to know if a particular item is subject to the tax or not. In addition, if the forms for sales tax exemptions are not up to date, the business becomes liable for the tax. Their suggestion was to lower the sales tax rate, while making it a flat tax on everything.
At the day’s first meeting in Glenwood, discussion centered on the gas tax, renewable energy, and affordable housing. There is an older building in the downtown area that should be taken down and replaced by a new structure, one resident said, but the state historical society has said it can’t be demolished. That led to a discussion on workforce housing and the need for more affordable homes in this part of the state.
Of course, no town hall gathering would be complete without mentioning the DNR. Two lakeshore owners at the Melrose meeting expressed frustration that the DNR could be doing a better job in the battle against aquatic invasive species by using more science-based methods. In Sauk Centre, irrigation water use was discussed, in addition to the buffer maps that the DNR is producing as part of the new buffer law. The intent of the Legislature was to include only public waters and public ditches, while early maps were also indicating private ditches.
That situation was resolved at a meeting with Gov. Mark Dayton and legislators last Friday, after which the governor announced that he was instructing the DNR to map only public waters and ditches. That settles one area of contention that had arisen with the bill’s passage. More work, however, needs to be done to clarify other issues surrounding the buffer language.
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Two more town hall meetings are on the agenda for this Saturday, Feb. 6. Here is the schedule:
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Freeport, 9 a.m., in the basement at Charlie’s Café, 115 Main St. E.
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Albany, 11 a.m., at City Hall, 400 Railroad Ave.
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