Dear Neighbor,
With adjournment about a month away, things are getting pretty busy here at the Capitol.
This week, House Democrats unveiled their tax plan. I was unpleasantly surprised to find out that it actually seeks to impose higher taxes on hard-working Minnesotans than Governor Dayton’s proposal. Their bill would raise taxes by $2.6 billion – making Minnesota the second highest taxed state in the nation. On top of creating a new fourth tier income tax, the House DFL plan would create a “temporary” fifth tier income tax bracket. In the world of the legislature, there is no such thing as a temporary tax. In addition to new income taxes, the House DFL plan would impose higher taxes on tobacco and alcohol products and it eliminates the charitable contribution deduction. Does discouraging people from donating to charities sound like a wise tax policy to you?
The House DFL “jobs” bill came before the House this week. Instead of focusing on job-creation, it mostly spends taxpayer money on wasteful and inefficient government programs. Some of the spending items include $28 million for Explore Minnesota advertising, $5 million to bail out St. Paul with loan forgiveness, $360,000 for the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development for marketing consultants to rebrand state programs, $400,000 for HOME Line, a tenant’s rights group that lobbies the legislature that is already funded from local governments and private donors, among many other wasteful spending proposals. I regret to report that the bill passed the House.
In addition to being in session every day this week, the House is scheduled to meet tomorrow – Saturday – to debate the Legacy and State Government Finance bills.
ST. CROIX RIVER CROSSING
On Monday, Representative Dettmer and I met with officials from the Minnesota Department of Transportation to discuss the timing of the building of the St. Croix River Crossing, road closures associated with construction of the bridge, and the date it will be ready for public use. Right now, the project is expected to be complete by 2016.
As always, I am interested in your feedback. Please feel free to contact me by e-mail at Rep.Kathy.Lohmer@House.MN or contact my office at 651-296-4244. You can also send mail to my office address: 239 State Office Building, 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155.
Sincerely,
Kathy