"I want to thank Governor Dayton for bringing forward a serious proposal to address our state's real transportation infrastructure needs. As I have said, in order for any plan to receive a proportional number of votes from House Democrats, it needs to be a comprehensive, long-term approach that doesn't rely primarily on general obligation borrowing or money currently used to fund schools and hospitals, and doesn't pit one part of the state against another. Gov. Dayton's plan would meet those standards, as do some other proposals currently on the table.
"Unfortunately, the proposal put forward by the Republicans in the Minnesota House fails to meet any of the standards necessary for Democratic support. While Gov. Dayton's plan would be a bridge to the future, Republicans have offered Minnesotans a bridge to nowhere. And yet, ironically, it is corporate special interest groups like the Minnesota Jobs Coalition who are declaring real solutions dead on arrival and apparently calling the shots within the House Republican Caucus.
"Going forward, I hope that Speaker Daudt and House Republicans will work with Gov. Dayton and Democrats in the legislature to come up with a real solution to a problem they campaigned on solving."