Dear Neighbor,
Activity in St. Paul is beginning to pick up as lawmakers prepare for the start of this year’s legislative session on February 25. Our state’s two-year budget was passed last year, so this spring’s session will focus on many policy issues and should adjourn by mid-May. Governor Dayton has deemed this session the “Unsession” and has asked for input on which state policies can be reversed or discontinued. Based on the input of constituents in our area, I will be approaching this session with many ideas for the governor and my legislative colleagues to consider.
I will again be serving on the Taxes, Education Policy, and Early Childhood & Youth Development Policy Committees. Much of my time at the State Capitol will be focused on these issues which affect the lives of many in our district.
First, businesses and families need the legislature to repeal harmful business-to-business (B2B) taxes passed into law last year. The taxes weren’t properly vetted and were added into the final Omnibus Tax Bill with only hours remaining in the 2013 session. Since their passage, we’ve heard from Minnesotans across the state that the telecommunications tax, farm/commercial equipment repair tax and warehousing services tax should all be reversed in order to prevent potential downturns to our state’s job market and economy. The repair tax alone now applies to farm machinery, medical equipment, electronic equipment, capital equipment, computer and industrial equipment, photocopying machines, printers, televisions and scientific instruments, to name a few.
These taxes result in an extreme competitive disadvantage for businesses impacted by this new fixed cost of doing business in Minnesota that is not imposed in most other states. They also harm small and mid-sized businesses especially, as our small businesses are less likely to be able to do these new services in-house and thereby avoid the sales tax. With Wisconsin right across the river, the differences in state tax competitiveness will be more evident for our area if we don’t act soon. Many families have come to me justifiably angered that last year’s tax bill added thousands of dollars in new taxes when a “short sale” happens in order to prevent foreclosure of their home. Hopefully this session we can reverse this crippling and unfair tax increase.
Finally, I am looking forward to working with my legislative colleagues in St. Paul to improve the disastrous implementation of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and the Minnesota health care exchange MNsure. Since implementation last October, Obamacare has helped some people find the insurance they desperately need, but at the same time, has created a series of negative side effects nationwide such as the dropping of health coverage for millions of Americans. In Minnesota, where we have led the nation in health care for many years, the $200 million agency constructed to implement Obamacare is in need of a lot of improvement to restore our state’s health care legacy and to justify this large taxpayer expense.
Because young and healthy individuals are not signing up for Obamacare to the degree needed, some are projecting that a bailout of the insurance industry will be necessary because insurance rates were based on health risk model that has not come to pass. Meanwhile, premiums are increasing for many and we still have many uninsured adults who can’t access coverage options. Because of all this, Obamacare and MNsure will be a high focus of attention for the 2014 legislature.
If you’re planning to be in St. Paul during the session this spring, please stop by my office and say hello.
Sincerely,
State Representative Bob Barrett