Dear Friends,
Yesterday I had the honor of attending my first ever State of the State address. I was joined by my husband Tim as we heard from the Governor his thoughts and plans for the rest of the legislative session.
It was interesting that the Governor highlighted transportation as a priority, but did not mention his plan to raise the gas tax by a minimum of 16 cents per gallon in order to pay for it. My colleagues and I are hopeful this is an indication he may be willing to compromise and move away from this unpopular plan that would take more money out of the pockets of families.
Over the final weeks of session, we will be working on crafting, debating, and passing our 2016-2017 state budget. Republicans have proposed general fund spending of about $39.9 billion, which includes funding for our long-term transportation plan, and increased funding for nursing homes and education as well.
Simply put, we believe that government budgets should not grow faster than family budgets. Governor Dayton's proposal spends more than $43 billion including nearly all of the state's $1.869 billion surplus, as well as a gas tax increase to help pay for his transportation plan.
I'm hopeful to see some of the bills that I've been working on included in the omnibus bills we pass, and will keep you updated on the status of my bills, as well as the status of our budget bills.
Last call to take online survey
If you haven't yet, please take my 2015 legislative survey online by clicking here. We will be closing the survey on Monday to tabulate the results. If you would like a paper copy mailed to you, please call my office at 651-296-5387.
Have a great weekend,
Roz Peterson
State Representative, District 56B