Friends,
I hope you had a great weekend and were able to get out and enjoy the nice weather. We've been hard at work at the Capitol to get our work done by May 21st, the last day of session.
Rep. Barr at Hilltop Elementary School in Inver Grove Heights
Tax Conformity Bill Passes House
Today, Monday, April 30th, the House passed bipartisan tax
legislation on a vote of 90-38 that simplifies Minnesota’s tax code to fully benefit from federal tax reform and provide additional tax relief to middle-class Minnesotans. The legislation also delivers the first income tax rate cut for Minnesotans in nearly two decades by reducing the second tier income tax rate. Without these reforms, conforming to the federal tax code would cause 969,490 filers to pay more in taxes.
As a result of our proposal, more than 2.1 million Minnesota filers will benefit from a tax cut in tax year 2018. Highlights include:
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Helping middle-class Minnesotans keep more of what they earn by cutting the second tier income tax rate from 7.05% to 6.75% by tax year 2020. This would mark the first income tax rate reduction in Minnesota since 2000.
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Lowering taxes for people at all income levels by increasing the standard deduction for all filers.
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Protecting families by preserving a state personal and dependent exemption of $4,150.
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Encouraging affordable homeownership by allowing a state-itemized deduction of up to $30,000 in property taxes.
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Supporting hometown businesses and farmers by reinvesting extra revenue from corporate tax changes into Section 179 conformity and overall rate reductions.
This bill delivers the first income tax cut in nearly 20 years and helps simplify Minnesota's tax code. We are committed to getting a tax conformity bill done this year so Minnesotans won't face hassles and headaches when they file their taxes next April. I am also extremely pleased that my bill to help bring another fire station to Inver Grove Heights was included in the taxes bill.
We now await action by the Senate.
Education Bill Prioritizes Student Safety
Last Thursday, the House passed bipartisan education legislation on a vote of 94-29 that puts students first. House File 4328 prioritizes school and student safety, increases transparency in school finance and performance reporting, and helps prepare kids for a bright and successful future.
Our bill puts Minnesota kids first with a comprehensive school safety and education package. We provide critical resources and flexibility for our schools to address student safety and mental health. We also create a School Report Card so families can easily research and compare schools to find what will work best for their child. I am proud of our commitment to ensuring every Minnesota student has access to a world-class education.
Rep. Barr visited Bridge View School in St. Paul a specialized special education school that serves the learning needs of students with severe and profound low-incident developmental disabilities.
Highlights in the education portion of the bill include:
- Championing a multifaceted approach to give school districts the resources and flexibility they need to address student safety and security. That includes expanding the use of long-term facilities maintenance revenue for facility security upgrades, strengthening the state’s commitment to school-linked mental health grants, supporting suicide prevention training for teachers, increasing funding for Safe Schools Revenue, and more
- Strengthening and clarifying state law to address teacher misconduct and teacher licensure including prohibiting sexual relationships between educators and students, even if that student is 18; requiring periodic teacher background checks; and prohibiting the issuance or renewal of a teacher/administrative license or bus driver endorsement for certain felonies or gross misdemeanors involving a minor
- Requiring the Minnesota Department of Education to create a School Report Card —a one-stop-spot for summative and easily accessible school and district ratings that will provide families with a place to research, compare and help determine which school will work best for their child
- Enhancing the transparency of school funding and our commitment to tackling our state’s achievement gap by doubling the number of school audits each year. These audits will discern whether or not education dollars allocated to school districts and dedicated to special education, English-learner and low-income students are reaching the students intended
- Ensuring students are exposed to a wide variety of post-secondary options including the trades and branches of the military
- Strengthening laws that protect kids from school lunch shaming
- Creating a Special Education Working Group to engage stakeholders and examine the factors that are driving rising costs
A number of higher education provisions are also included in the package. Highlights include measures to fund student loan debt counseling, bring new sexual harassment reporting requirements and policies to the University of Minnesota, and to back a textbook affordability initiative.
This is a good bill for Minnesota students and I am glad we could get such broad, bipartisan support for it. We now await action by the Senate.
Rescuing Baby Ducks
Spring is the time of year that ducklings find themselves falling through storm grates and getting trapped in storm sewers. Last year in June, Inver Grove Heights Utility Division Workers were called out to rescue several ducklings. If you see a mother duck making an overabundance of noise next to a sewer grate, please call (651) 450-4309 and the Utility Division crew will respond accordingly.
Register for Summer Activities in IGH
Inver Grove Heights has a number of activity programs available for children and adults of all ages. See the Summer 2018 brochure here. And you can browse and register for programs online.
In Case You Missed It: Tour around 52B!
Late last summer, we put together a video that highlights some of the great and beautiful parts of District 52B, which encompasses Inver Grove Heights, Sunfish Lake, parts of Mendota Heights and Eagan. I think it turned out very well and am proud to represent such a fantastic place to live. Check out the video here!
On this day in History
In 1803, the negotiations for the Louisiana Purchase concluded. What was known as Louisiana Territory comprised most of the modern-day United States between the Mississippi and the Rocky Mountains, with the exceptions of Texas, parts of New Mexico, and other pockets of land already controlled by the United States. A formal treaty for the Louisiana Purchase, antedated to April 30, was signed two days later.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and ideas with me. You can schedule a time to meet with me in my office anytime by calling me at 651-296-4192, or share your thoughts by emailing me at rep.regina.barr@house.mn.
Have a great week!
Regina