Dear friends,
Last week I was sworn in to represent district 63A. I’m honored and humbled to be the voice of our communities at the State Capitol. I look forward to serving and am excited to get back to work.
Economic forecasts revealed early last month that we’re facing a $1.1 billion budget shortfall this year. When the money still owed to schools is included the shortfall rises to over $2 billion.
Despite this challenge, I believe that we can responsibly balance the budget, invest in education and move our state forward. Our first priority needs to be moving beyond filling the gaps that previous legislatures have left behind and creating a stable budget that allows us to address our state’s problems both now and years down the road.
This session I am serving as Property and Local Tax Division and Ethics Committee Chair. I am also a member of the Education Finance, Education Policy, Taxes and Ways and Means Committees. It is a heavy workload but I am ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work on these important issues.
On Thursday, I introduced legislation to provide expansive property tax relief to Minnesotans. Skyrocketing property taxes are hitting middle-class families hard and property tax relief is a big priority this legislative session.
My bill, HF 2, creates the Homestead Credit Refund to provide direct property tax relief to Minnesota homeowners and renters, many who have been squeezed in recent years. Last year the legislature eliminated the Homestead Credit and property taxes went up $370 million statewide. In the past decade property taxes have doubled, and are now the largest single source of revenue for state and local government. The Homestead Credit Refund expands the existing Homeowner Property Tax Refund that about 360,000 Minnesotans receive each year. It provides an additional $92 million in property tax relief to middle-class homeowners. In addition to providing property tax relief to homeowners, the bill provides property tax relief to renters by expanding the Renter’s Credit, which was reduced by the GOP-controlled Legislature two years ago.
In addition, the House introduced four other key bills to begin the legislative session. The first, HF 1, would make a $550 million “down payment” on the $1.1 billion we owe our K-12 schools, the second would increase funding for the Minnesota Investment Fund, one of the state’s primary tools to encourage businesses to set up shop in Minnesota, and the third would increase funding to the Minnesota Trade Office. The Trade Office works to help Minnesota businesses navigate foreign markets and trade regulations so they can increase their exports and put more Minnesotans to work. I intend to support these initiatives.
I also plan to support HF 5, which sets up a new Minnesota health exchange to make it easier and more affordable for middle-class families and small businesses to purchase health insurance. The exchange will be an online marketplace where individuals, families and small businesses will be able to get quality, affordable health coverage. Minnesota families will save a projected $1 billion by using the exchange, which boils down to between $500 and $1,800 per family, depending on income. Through the exchange, an estimated 300,000 uninsured Minnesotans will gain health care coverage by 2016.
If the legislature does not create its own exchange, a one-size-fits-all federal exchange will be implemented instead. We are moving swiftly to meet federal deadlines and Governor Dayton must sign the Health Care Exchange bill by the end of March. The exchange will begin open enrollment by October 1, 2013.
Throughout the legislative session please feel free to contact me directly with your input, feedback, questions and concerns. My office door in St. Paul is always open, or you can reach me by phone at (651) 296-0173 or by email at rep.jim.davnie@house.mn. You can also follow me on Twitter at @jdavnie and follow the Property Tax Committee at @mnproptaxes.
I also encourage you to sign up to receive Session Weekly, a nonpartisan publication of Minnesota House of Representatives Public Information Services. It is no longer available in print but you can sign up to receive the weekly electronic updates here: http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/hinfo/subscribesw.asp.
Thank you for the honor of serving you at the State House.
Sincerely,
Jim Davnie
State Representative
District 63A