Dear Neighbor,
Early this week we in the Republican controlled Legislature successfully sent Gov. Dayton a balanced budget to fund state government for the next two fiscal years beginning July 1, 2017 and ending June 30, 2019. Unfortunately, Gov. Dayton continues to demand more and more spending while rejecting common sense reforms that would benefit hard working Minnesotans and therefore vetoed the funding bills that were sent to him.
Republicans are continuing to lead as we spent this week negotiating and drafting replacement funding bills to send to Gov. Dayton. My colleagues and I will be at the Capitol all weekend working to pass replacement bills, and once complete, Republicans will have finished our work twice by sending Gov. Dayton two rounds of funding bills prior to the constitutionally required deadline of this coming Monday.
Rep. Lucero and Sen. Kiffmeyer meeting students from Saint Michael Catholic School on a field trip visiting
and touring the newly renovated Capitol.
BUDGET BILLS SENT TO GOVERNOR
Monday this week we passed the remaining of the first round of funding bills and sent them to Gov. Dayton for his signature. By Monday evening Gov. Dayton vetoed the three bills. Below are several highlights of the bills Gov. Dayton vetoed.
Public Safety
Higher Education
Job Growth and Energy Affordability
Rep. Lucero attending the Eagle Scout Court of Honor last weekend at Albertville City Hall presenting a House Resolution to each Peter and Joey in recognition of their each achieving the esteemed rank of Eagle Scout.
GROWTH IN MN STATE GOVERNMENT
The two-year state budgets passed into law for the last several budget cycles are as follows:
The total increase in the last eight years (including the FY18-19 budget Gov. Dayton vetoed) equals an approximate $11 billion increase (more than 31%).
But wait, there’s more…
The above was budget spending only. The unspent revenue increases must also be factored in. During the same eight-year period, $300 million was allocated to the state cash account, approximately $1.5 billion was allocated to the state budget reserve account, and there is currently a projected budget surplus of $1.65 billion. The sum of these three additional revenues is approximately $3.45 billion.
Combining the approximate $11 billion spending increase with the approximate $3.45 billion additional revenues equals a total $14.45 billion (40.93%) revenues and spending increase in a mere eight years!!
How does your household income growth rate compare to the state government growth rate during the eight years Mark Dayton has been Governor?
Rep. Lucero bumped into several of his former cyber-security students this week while attending the Secure360 Conference in Minneapolis.
SECURE 360 CONFERENCE
I've been working in the cyber-security field for the last approximate fifteen years and for the seven years immediately preceding being elected to the MN House, in addition to my day job, I also taught college level Computer Forensics, Computer Security, Voice and Data Communications, Server, and Networking related courses in the evenings. Because the law is not keeping up with technology, I’ve been utilizing my background to champion several bills related to cyber-security to better protect Minnesotans’ private data.
The Secure360 Conference occurs annually in the Twin Cities drawing information security professionals and vendors from around the country for presentations and discussions on timely, important subject areas including governance, risk and compliance, information security, physical security, business continuity management, and professional development. As one who works within the cyber-security field, the Secure360 Conference is one of several cyber-security conferences I attend on a reoccurring basis and this year’s Secure360 Conference was held this week in Minneapolis.
Below is a list of several of the break-out sessions relevant to the threats and vulnerabilities ALL of us face in our day-to-day lives that were offered at this year's conference:
STAYING IN TOUCH
As always please contact me to share any issues, concerns, or feedback you may have that will assist me best represent you. The best way to reach me is by email at Rep.Eric.Lucero@House.MN or by phone at 651-296-1534.
Have a great weekend!
Sincerely,
Eric Lucero
State Representative
District 30B
Albertville, Hanover, Otsego, Saint Michael, and the Wright County portion of Dayton