I had the delight of showing FCCLA student Emily around the Capitol as she shadowed me during a few committee hearings and meetings. As fate would have it, that day legislators had an opportunity to test ride an automated shuttle on the capitol grounds and she was able to join me - I think that may have been her highlight, as thrilling as committee hearings can be ;)
Dear Neighbors,
Here is an update with the latest news from the Capitol and around our community.
Property Tax Reform
This week the House Property Tax Committee held a hearing on my bill, House File 3276, which would consolidate 17 separate property types that arguably have residential components into a single classification: Residential.
As you may recall, last year I had a bill that established a legislative task force, purposed with the goal of finding ways to simplify our property tax system. Having served on the Property Tax Committee for two years, I found our system to be overly complex.
But why is complexity a problem?
I think one should be able to understand what they pay the government and why, so they can hold elected officials accountable. As the Property Tax Working Group Report from 2012 notes, “[W]hen complexity is too great, taxpayers have little hope of identifying how their taxes are specifically calculated. This breeds anger and distrust as they are expected to take it on faith that they are being treated fairly and correctly. They do not know how to keep state and local government officials accountable for outcomes and hear mixed messages they cannot assess." Furthermore, "...when state policy makers cannot easily learn and understand the system they are unable to adequately assess the merits of proposals and to accurately assess the outcomes of their actions. They are unable to explain issues to taxpayers with confidence. The ability to grapple with broad reform is handicapped. Policy making becomes reactionary rather than strategic.”
As a freshmen this frustrated me, but very few people wanted to tackle the issue because broad reform could mean an increase in taxes for some. While others could see a decrease, no one wants to – myself included – raise taxes on anyone.
Testifying in committee this week with Michael Stalberger, Taxpayer Services Director for Blue Earth County
Yet principled governance calls for accountability. Taxpayers should be able to understand their tax statements so they may hold us, elected officials, accountable. It took decades for our system to get as complex as it is and will take time to become less complex.
And my bill is one step in the right direction. It would eliminate a few classes, such as the non-commercial seasonal recreational classification ("cabins"). As some classes see a large jump in their property tax rates, the bill creates two state refund programs to mitigate any tax increases property owners would may see under the plan. The bill also repeals the state general levy on seasonal-recreational properties.
I want to reassure folks that the bill does not change homestead status, and many of the classifications we are collapsing will not actually see a rate change. For those that do see changes, the bill seeks to mitigate increases as much as possible.
In essence, this bill gets to the heart of the idea that a house is a house. If you see a house, it would be classified as "residential" whereas currently, that is not so.
I am hopeful this will move forward in some capacity this session, and while various groups are pushing back a bit due to impacts to those they represent, there seems to be great support from legislators for steering the state toward a more principled system of taxation.
Sex Trafficking Prevention Training
I recently introduced bipartisan legislation that will ensure that Minnesotans working in hotels, motels and resorts are trained to recognize potential victims of sex trafficking. Each employee would need to receive the training within 90 days of being hired.
I was inspired to do something more in the realm of Human Trafficking after being invited to speak at a 5K hosted by Running For Justice, an organization that raises money to donate "to homeless shelters, trafficking rescues, and other organizations...to financially aid in the prevention of trafficking those at risk, and the recovery of those who have been trafficked."
As the Super Bowl was recently in Minnesota, the issue of sex trafficking garnered even more attention than normal as large events of this nature tend to create an increase in the demand for sex trafficking. Over the last few months, I dug into what our state does to combat sex trafficking and how we can improve. I found that Connecticut recently passed a law to require hotels to train their employees to recognize the signs of sex trafficking and thought that is something Minnesota should do too.
I think this is a commonsense provision that will help hotel employees better recognize signs of trafficking, and it could potentially save the lives of many victims. I hope we can get it signed into law this year.
MN.IT Reform
This week, a bill was introduced in the House that would help reform our state’s information technology agency, MN.IT, after its disastrous rollout of MNLARS (Minnesota Licensing and Registration System) last year.
The bill would require MN.IT to first search for commercially available solutions before building any software themselves. It would require the agency to seek quotes from third-party vendors and search for software that could be adapted to meet our state’s technology needs.
I think this is a smart reform that will create more accountability, save taxpayers money and hopefully prevent technology failures like MNLARS from happening in the future.
Around the Community
Northern Suburban Home Improvement Show
The 20th annual North Suburban Home Improvement Show will be on Saturday, March 10 from 8 AM to 2 PM at the Andover YMCA. It’s sponsored by the cities of Coon Rapids, Anoka and Andover, as well as the Anoka Area Chamber of Commerce. There will be more than 100 vendors at the event, so don’t miss out! More information can be found here.
Ramsey Parks and Recreation
There are plenty of fun activities in Ramsey this month! Check out the Ramsey Parks and Recreation event calendar here for more information.
Anoka County Home Landscaping & Garden Fair
As we slowly but surely head into spring, why not check out the Anoka County Home Landscaping & Garden Fair? This annual event includes classes led by talented master gardeners, exhibitors and more. It takes place on Saturday, April 7 from 8:20 AM to 3:30 PM at Bunker Hills Activities Center in Ham Lake. You can learn more including how to register here.
Annual Ramsey EDA Business Expo
Mark your calendars for the 10th annual Ramsey EDA Business Expo on Saturday, March 31 from 10 AM-2 PM at the Fountains of Ramsey. Get all of the details on this great event that features local businesses here.
2018 Bike Helmet Clinics
Safe Kids Anoka County is offering bike helmet fitting clinics this spring including one at Blaine City Hall on April 14 from 9 AM-Noon, and one on April 24 at the Anoka Police Department from 4 PM-7PM. Check out all of the details here.
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Please know my office is available should you need assistance on a matter of state government. I can be reached by phone at 651-296-1729 or via email at rep.abigail.whelan@house.mn. I also welcome your input and ideas on legislation and matters moving through the Minnesota House. I am here to serve you and it is a joy! Thank you for the honor and privilege of being your state representative.
Have a wonderful weekend,
Abigail