Dear Friends,
Happy New Year! As 2023 comes to a close, I wish you all hope, peace, and prosperity for 2024. My New Year’s goal is to read the Bible more and to put together my son’s photo collage before his graduation day. I tend to leave projects until crunch time, and I don’t want to wait until the night before for this project!
New Laws Take Effect January 1
The new year marks the implementation date of several new laws that passed during the 2023 legislative session. Remember: When Minnesota had a historic $17.5 billion surplus, Democrats raised taxes by $10 billion dollars and spent your surplus tax dollars to expand government by 40%. Many of the new laws that will take effect in 2024 reflect the Democrats’ expensive and extreme policies. These include:
- Earned Sick and Safe Time. Keep reading for more information on this below! Though different from the expensive and expansive Paid Medical and Family Leave bill that also passed last session, the changes to earned sick and safe time will greatly impact our job creators and workers. The law will require all employers to offer full paid time off, and it applies to any employers with one or more employees. It covers all employees, including part-time and temporary workers. The Department of Labor and Industry has put together a helpful FAQ page for any job creators who still have questions about this new law.
- Menstrual Products for Schools. All students in public or charter schools will now have access to free menstrual products in bathrooms. These products must be available for all students in grades 4 to 12.
- Political Contribution Refund (PCR) Increases. Among many of the changes to Minnesota’s election laws that Democrats passed last session is an increase to the PCR program. The individual political contribution refund will increase from $50 to $75, and joint married filers will have an increase of $100 to $150. These increased refunds will be applicable to any donations made after January 1, 2024.
- Specialty License Plates Available. For one of the more fun things that passed last session, you will be able to show your support for Minnesota’s six professional sports teams with your license plate. Options include the Vikings, Wild, Twins, Timberwolves, Lynx, and United.
You can learn about other laws that will take effect in the new year here.
One-party control of our state is not serving the people of Minnesota well. Family budgets are being stretched thin by higher prices for gas, groceries, and energy bills. St. Paul is in desperate need of balance so we can put Minnesotans, and their pocketbooks, first once again.
Earned Sick and Safe Time
I know that the changes to Earned Sick and Safe Time is causing a lot of concern for many job creators. Just today I chatted with a few small business owners who had zero clue about the law. ZERO. The National Federation Independent Business has a couple helpful links for employers:
Here is a webinar on “Everything You Need to Know About MN Earned Sick and Safe Time Law.”
In “New Year Brings New Laws For Minnesota Small Businesses,” NFIB convers some of the other laws that will impact job creators.
Our Main Street job creators are the backbones of our communities. These burdensome new regulations, mandates, and tax increases are only going to make it more difficult for them to keep their doors open and support their workers.