Dear Neighbor,
Here is an update from the Capitol.
Budget Targets
This week, the House unveiled and adopted budget targets which finance committees are using as the framework to craft budget omnibus bills in their respective committees. Included in the overall target is $1.35 billion in tax relief; $450 million in new funding for road and bridge infrastructure; $1.1 billion in new funding for K-12 schools compared to last biennium; and an overall budget target that ensures sustainable levels of state spending.
Tax Relief
One of the top priorities in our community in meaningful tax relief that puts money back in the hands of those who helped fund our state’s surplus. Provisions in the $1.35 billion tax omnibus bill return money to everyone from seniors to families to local businesses.
One of the largest components in the bill is a $270 million investment to increase the income limit at which social security income is taxable, putting more money back in the hands of retired Minnesotans. There is also a first-in-the-nation tax credit for student loan payments that will reduce taxes an average of $640 for nearly 78,000 Minnesotans, as well as funding to help families saving for their child’s higher education with a 529 Savings Plan. For working parents, there are modifications to the child and dependent care credit which will provide a family of four with childcare expenses an average of $660 more in relief than in current law. Finally, for our hometown businesses, we are reducing the extra state property tax on businesses, exempting the first $200,000 in property value to help spur hiring and private sector growth.
This comprehensive tax relief legislation will reduce the tax burden for many families and taxpayers in Edina, and I will keep you updated on its progress.
Transportation
Also unveiled this week was the Minnesota Road & Bridge Act which will invest $6 billion into our state’s transportation infrastructure over the next decade. In the bill is also a bipartisan provision I authored that creates a statutory appropriation for the I-494 Corridor Commission. Improving traffic flow and easing congestion in the metro area is essential, and I am glad my provision was included.
Clearway Bill
I introduced bipartisan legislation recently that appropriates funding to Clearway Minnesota, the statewide tobacco quit line service that helps Minnesotans looking to stop using tobacco products. It would also require promotion to notify the public about this service.
Each year tobacco takes the lives of thousands of Minnesotans and costs our state billions of dollars. I am glad to support a cause that is working toward a smoke free generation!
Reinsurance Bill
Last week, the House approve the Minnesota Premium Security Plan which establishes a state-based reinsurance program. The bill is designed to stabilize our failing individual market by mitigating the impact of high-risk individuals, and is estimated to reduce premiums by 17 percent or more.
Too many people in Edina are facing increasingly unaffordable health insurance options year after year with high monthly costs and deductibles. This plan is about providing more affordable coverage, stabilizing a floundering individual insurance market, improving competition, and ensuring that Minnesotans with more medical needs continue to have access to coverage.
Around the Capitol and Community
Thank you to all of the Edina residents who have come by to meet with me over the past couple weeks.
Visitors include Christopher Morton who was at the Capitol for Beer Wholesalers Day; Jocelyn Cookston who came to discuss veterans issues; Tracey Hester with Minnesota Retailers; Doug Seaton who came for Contractors’ Day on the Hill; Lora Larson who came for Disability Services Day at the Capitol; Janet Miller who shared her support for early childhood education; Steven Krikava from Hunger Solutions; and Laura Green.
Thank you for taking the time to come to Saint Paul and meet with me!
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I welcome you to contact my office at any time to share your thoughts, concerns and ideas about what you would like to see happen this session. Your input is invaluable and helps me better represent the voices and priorities of our community. I can be reached by phone at 651-296-4363 or by email at Rep.Dario.Anselmo@House.mn.
It is an honor and privilege to serve as your voice at the Capitol.
Sincerely,
Dario
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