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Legislative News and Views - Rep. Jim Knoblach (R)

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Legislative update from Rep. Jim Knoblach re: end of session

Monday, May 23, 2016

Dear Neighbor,

As with the conclusion of any legislative session, there are accomplishments we can be proud of and things that will have to wait until next year.

It is good we passed a fiscally conservative supplemental finance package while providing some needed tax reductions and state spending investments. I was disappointed in the Senate for not passing the bonding and transportation bill we had passed, which led to no bill being passed at all. Hopefully we can have a quick special session to again pass this bill, which would have further benefits to our area.

DFL Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk highlighted the supplemental finance bill which I authored, and the tax bill as successes of the session. The tax bill is an achievement with more than $800 million in taxpayer savings over the next three years. The bill, which received strong bipartisan support on a vote of 123-10, includes more than half a billion dollars in permanent tax breaks for middle-class Minnesotans.

In the next three years, the plan provides tax relief in the amounts as follows:

  • $90.6 million in agriculture property tax relef for Minnesota farmers

  • $110 million in tax relief for college graduates paying off student loans through a refundable tax credit up to $1,000, the first of its kind in the country.

  • $49 million in tax relief for families who contribute to 529 Plans to save for their children's college costs.

  • $146 million in property tax relief for every small business in the state by exempting the first $100,000 of commercial-industrial property

  • $150 million in tax relief for working families by expanding the working family tax credit

  • $32 million to reduce the cost of childcare; by expanding the childcare tax credit, families could earn a tax credit up to $960.

The Supplemental Finance bill, which I authored passed, on a strong bipartisan vote of 95-39, and included additional funding for various state agencies, and several local provisions, including:

  • Providing $430,000 in funding for a pilot project at St. Cloud District 742 to be used for creating morning and afternoon preschool sections, consisting of low-income students and English language learners at three elementary schools.
  • Putting Cold Spring Brewing and the City of Cold Spring on a track to resolving their water and economic development problems caused by the trout stream that runs through town.
  • Additional funds for District 742 (estimated to be $500,000) to help low performing students through the Tony Sanneh Foundation founded by Saint Paul native and retired professional soccer player Tony Sanneh
  • $180,000 of funding for the Saint Cloud Human Rights office
  • $200,000 for helping deal with invasive aquatic species at Lake Koronis
  • Allowing funeral homes with branches that don't have preparation rooms on site to stay open. Without this bill, such funeral homes (like the Daniel Funeral Home in Saint Joseph) will be required to close by June 30, 2017 or add a prep room at a potential cost of $100,000 or more. This issue affects small towns throughout the state
  • Provides additional funding of $1 million for Centers for Independent Living, including the Center in Sauk Rapids, which helps handicapped people live independently.
  • Provides additional funding of $1 million for Services to the Blind, which helps older adults becoming blind stay in their homes.

My supplemental finance bill also included a few major tax provisions:

  • State income taxes will no longer apply to veterans pension benefits. This is a major change in our state tax code, which will recognize the sacrifice veterans have made in serving our country and give them more money for their retirement
  • People who have a stillborn birth will now get a state tax credit of $2000. The rationale for this bill is that children that die shortly after birth are eligible for the federal dependent tax deduction, but children who are stillborn get no tax benefits.

I am pleased with the outcome of my bill, which remains fiscally conservative while providing some needed tax reductions and state spending investments. However, as mentioned above I was disappointed in the Senate not passing the bonding and transportation bill we had passed in time, which led to no bill being passed at all. This bill would have further benefits to the St. Cloud area, including funding for the renovation of Eastman Hall at Saint Cloud State University, and funding for phase 2 of the renovation at the Saint Cloud Correctional Facility. Hopefully an agreement can be reached with the Governor to call a special session on these soon.

On a final note, due to my frustration with the way these sessions always seem to end, I was also able to get language into the Supplemental Finance bill which will cause a study of how other states set their budget targets. Hopefully we can learn from other states in how to prevent the sort of problems we had at the end of this session.

Sincerely,

Jim Knoblach