By Rep. Paul Anderson
Most of the attention since the Legislative session ended has focused on the massive tax bill passed by the Democratic majority and signed by Governor Dayton. I received a listing of the new or increased components of the $2.1 billion package, and it was nearly a page long. The biggest is the rate change for the top 2 percent of Minnesota income-earners, which amounts to a 25 percent increase. The rate will go from 7.85 percent up to 9.85, making Minnesota one of the highest income tax states in the nation.
There are also increases in corporate and estate taxes, along with a miscellaneous increase in tax on car rentals. The tobacco tax was also hit with substantial increases, with the excise tax on cigarettes increasing by $1.60 per pack. In addition, little cigars will see increased taxes, along with a category called “moist snuff.”
Changes were also made to the sales tax, although the Governor’s major revision in that category, the business-to- business sales tax, was dropped, we thought. Late in the conference committee process a warehousing and storage tax was added, along with sales tax being applied to electronic and commercial equipment repair and maintenance. That’s a big one, as it affects farmers by making the labor portion of repair work subject to the tax. Also added to the list of items to be subjected to Minnesota’s 6.876-percent sales tax are direct satellite services, digital products, and Internet purchases.
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The sun came out just in time last Saturday morning, June 1, for the Stearns County Breakfast on the Farm. Held at the Steve and Lisa Groetsch Dairy, just north of Albany, the event has gotten bigger in each of its six years of existence. Upwards of 3,000 people were expected to visit the farm and have breakfast, and then tour the modern dairy set-up. Four robotic milking systems handle that part of the operation on the 250-head of cows, while ten other employees, including the three Groetsch children, help out with other duties on the farm.
The amount of work and the number of people needed to pull off an event such as this is amazing. From parking cars at the Albany High School parking lot, to the fleet of buses that transported people from there to the farm, to those who cooked up the breakfast, it was a team effort. Lots of kids’ activities were featured, with probably the busiest being the display of small farm animals. One young guy let out a squeal of delight when a young calf got up from a sitting position and looked at the amazed youngster.
That’s what those of us involved in agriculture need to do more of. We need to tell the story of production agriculture to a public that’s rapidly losing its connection to the farm. I visited with a young family from the St. Cloud area who was there to show their young kids what a modern dairy operation is all about. Congratulations to the Groetsch family and all those involved in making the event such a success. Plans are already underway for next year’s Breakfast on the Farm, to be held at the John Funk dairy between Greenwald and New Munich.
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