Dear Neighbors,
Today is the third and final committee deadline, so much of our time this week has been spent moving omnibus finance bills out of committee. Even though the state’s two-year budget was enacted last year, lawmakers generally appropriate supplemental funding in certain areas of state government to cover for unexpected costs.
To that end, last week the House Ways and Means Committee adopted spending targets for budget adjustments that build on our historic accomplishments of the 2017 Legislative Session that included tax relief and funding for our roads and bridges.
We are proposing to dedicate the largest portion of the budget surplus toward simplifying our tax code so that Minnesotans will fully benefit from recent federal tax reform. Also included in the budget target is funding for school safety improvements and other commonsense items like roads and bridges.
On Monday, a bill I chief-authored that prevents the Minnesota Department of Agriculture from adopting rules, or “water resource protection requirements,” for nitrogen fertilizers unless the rules are approved by the Legislature, was passed by the House on a bipartisan vote of 69-56.
I share the Governor’s goal in ensuring that Minnesota’s groundwater is clean and usable for future generations of Minnesotans. However, the timing of these proposed rules gave the Legislature little time to vet the proposal through the committee process.
Last week, legislators urged the governor to release the text of the proposed rule prior to its submission to the State Register to allow farmers, agriculture groups, legislators, and the public additional time to review and submit feedback. In a letter Monday, Governor Dayton indicated he had the text of the rule in his possession, but declined to release it before its submission to the State Register.
We must make sure that future rulemaking proposals undergo a rigorous and public vetting process to guarantee that the thoughts and concerns of all interested parties are heard. Farmers are some of the best stewards of our land and resources, this legislation will ensure that they will not see unnecessary regulations related to nitrates without first undergoing a fair and transparent process.
Finally, there was exciting news this week as plans were unveiled to build three new veterans homes through the state. Using excess funds from the Vikings Stadium Reserve Account, the plan funds veterans homes in Preston, Bemidji, and Montevideo.
Our veterans have served our country admirably, it’s time that we do our part to serve them. I am hopeful that Governor Dayton will support this legislation and bring these much needed additional veterans homes to our state.
I met with Gwen Rudney and Bryan Herrman this week to discuss capital investments at the University of MN, Morris.
I met with Kim Melton, Kasey Wiechmann, and Christopher Hogge to discuss their Leadership Development Program.
Staying Connected
That’s all for this week’s update. Please be sure to stay in touch as we move into the final weeks of session. As always, I can be reached by phone at either 651-296-4929 or 701-361-1909. I can also be reached via email at rep.jeff.backer@house.mn.
Have a great weekend,
Jeff