Conferees reach agreement on state government finance bill

With less than 21 hours until constitutional adjournment, the state government finance conference committee finished its work, sending a nearly $974 million biennial funding package to the House and Senate floors.

Rep. Sarah Anderson

Sponsored by Rep. Sarah Anderson (R-Plymouth) and Sen. Tom Saxhaug (DFL-Grand Rapids), the conference committee agreement on HF495/SF888* is about $28.6 million below what the Senate initially proposed, but about $78.3 million more than what was proposed by the House.

The agreement calls for a 1.8 percent compensation operating adjustment for many executive branch offices and state boards, including the governor’s office, Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board, Minnesota Management & Budget, Revenue and Administration departments and the state’s four ethnic councils.

Entering the conference committee, the House plan called for a 6.5 percent base reduction to the constitutional offices; the Senate did not. The House also would have reduced most state agency budgets by a small percentage; the Senate generally did not and provided the 1.8 percent compensation adjustment as requested by the governor.

Other spending increases in the bill include:

• $14.98 million for the Senate;
• $3 million for maintenance and enhancement of the state’s tax system;
• $2.77 million for the House of Representatives;
• $650,000 for a Healthy Eating through Humanities program;
• $500,000 for the Office of the Legislative Auditor;
• $341,000 one-time operating increase for the state racing commission;
• $300,000 for public television equipment grants; and
• $250,000 for Minnesota Public Radio equipment grants.

The agreement calls for a two-year repeal of the state’s political contribution fund — including the ability for individuals to get a $50 refund for specific political contributions.

The agreement also calls for a $36 million one-time reduction in state contribution to the Public Employees Retirement Association for Minneapolis pension reimbursement. Earlier this year, Anderson said a recent actuarial report indicated that reducing the state share would still keep the fund on solid footing, in part, because the employer share doesn’t change and less overall money is needed for the fund.

MORE: View the spreadsheet

Among the policy provisions, the agreement states “the Office of the Legislative Auditor shall report on the efficiency of the examinations conducted by the state auditor” and report back to the Legislature by Jan. 15, 2016. Additionally, the agreement would allow a county to have its annual financial audit performed by the state auditor’s office or a private CPA firm. State Auditor Rebecca Otto spoke against the proposal, saying it would be vetoed by the governor.

Other policy provisions include:

• providing qualified military members, their spouses and retired military members who honorably left service within the previous two years to receive expedited, temporary licenses — with durations of six to 12 months — in the areas of optometry, podiatry, dietetics and nutrition, family and marriage therapy, professional counseling, professional clinical counseling, alcohol and drug counseling and barbering;
• the Department of Veterans Affairs must verify that a business is owned by a veteran before the Department of Administration certifying the business as a veteran-owned small business. 
• a Healthy Eating, Here at Home program would be established to provide incentives for low-income Minnesotans to use federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for healthy purchases at Minnesota-based farmers' markets;
• Hennepin County would be permitted to prevent condemnation of county property by a railroad company through eminent domain if the county determines public safety or first responder access would be negatively impacted as a result; and
• a number of racing commission policy and technical changes, including eliminating the requirement for 25-week season that begins before the first Saturday in May and raising the ceiling on fines related to horse racing of commission rules from $2,000 to $5,000.