Survey Results
Thank you to everyone who participated in my 2015 Legislative Survey. Your input is valuable, and I appreciate the feedback, comments and opinions you shared with me about issues currently being debated at the Capitol.
Here are the results:
Governor Dayton and the Senate DFL majority have proposed adding a 6.5% sales tax to fuel sales to fund transportation projects. Do you support this proposal?
Yes 25.86%
No 66.46%
Undecided 7.68%
The February forecast showed that Minnesota is projected to have a $1.9 billion surplus for Minnesota's 2016-2017 budget. What should the legislature do with that money?
Increase Spending (If so, in the box below, please specify in what area. For example, Health and Human Services, Transportation, Education, Public Safety, etc.) 41.18%
HHS 10.40%
Transportation 30.40%
Education 20.60%
Public Safety 5.80%
Other 2.40%
Return it to the taxpayers 22.84%
Keep it in the reserves 15.03%
Combination of the Above 20.95%
Currently, school districts make staff retention decisions based solely on teacher seniority. Some legislators are advocating for a reform that allows schools to also consider teacher effectiveness, as determined by performance evaluations in those decisions. Do you support making this change?
Yes 82.36%
No 10.42%
Undecided 7.21%
Governor Dayton has proposed an additional half-percent increase in the sales tax in the seven-county metro area to fund transit. Do you support this proposal?
Yes 23.65%
No 67.13%
Undecided 9.22%
Currently, members of the Metropolitan Council are appointed by the governor. Do you believe the process for selecting members to represent our community on the Metropolitan Council should change?
Yes, they should be elected by the voters of the Met Council District 56.26%
Yes, the governor's appointment should be subject to votes of the city councils within the Met Council district 27.52%
No, the governor's appointment process is sufficient 16.22%
Under Minnesota law, Sunday liquor sales are illegal in Minnesota. Do you support repealing this law, allowing liquor stores to sell alcohol on Sundays?
Yes 57.43%
No 24.70%
Prefer to let local governments decide 17.87%
Should the legislature work with higher education institutions including the University of Minnesota to reduce student tuition?
No, tuition costs are not a problem 6.93%
Yes, we can accomplish this by increasing state funding to public universities and colleges 4.55%
Yes, we can accomplish this if public universities manage their resources more efficiently 52.87%
Yes, we can accomplish this by providing additional state funding and asking public universities to use their existing resources more efficiently 35.64%
What is the best approach for addressing the problems with MNsure in Minnesota?
It isn't working, repeal it entirely 33.54%
It can be fixed by enacting significant reforms 25.72%
It's working, keep as it is currently 12.14%
Give Minnesotans more options outside of MNsure 28.60%