Dear Neighbors,
The 2017 Minnesota legislative session concluded late on Monday without resolution of 70% of the major budget bills. Because of this unfinished business, a special session began at 12:01 on Tuesday morning to complete the budget, with an agreement to wrap up work at 7:00 a.m. Wednesday. Today marks day 3 of the special session and to date, the Legislature passed the following bills: Transportation and taxes.
I’ve been working with my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to find solutions, and expressing my concerns on various budget items. However, the Republicans have control of the House and the Senate. They have the ability to prioritize their agenda, choose which bills we hear in committee and the ones we vote on.
Minnesotans expect the Legislature to get its work done on time, especially in a time of projected surplus. There is simply no excuse. The budget bills contained a litany of controversial policy provisions from pre-K elimination to taking away local control. The primary job of this legislative session is to establish a balanced budget for the biennium. Policy provisions without financial implications ought to be handled separately when working on budget bills. Blending policy with budget confounds the process, which leads to needless deadlock.
I remain hopeful our work will finish today. I’m ready to pass a budget that improves opportunity for all Minnesotans by investing in what makes our community, state and economy strong.
Please stay in touch; I appreciate your input on state related matters.
Sincerely,
Connie Bernardy
State Representative