|
Dear Friends,
This week, the House passed a technical corrections bill to fix errors in the 2023 tax bill. Over the summer, it was discovered that there was an issue with the standard deduction that if not addressed would have cost 76% of Minnesota taxpayers $352 million in additional taxes. This bill passed with broad bipartisan support, however, I am deeply disappointed that Democrats reneged on their promise to fix another issue with the 2023 tax bill.
The legislation also failed to address another error from the 2023 tax bill with the Net Operation Loss provision. The legislative intent was to make this provision effective for tax year 2024. However, the original bill contained an effective date of tax year 2023. This provision impacts our Main Street businesses who continue to face difficulty keeping their doors open. If we do not fix this problem, which both Democrat Tax Chairs pledged to fix over the summer, employers will face an estimated $14.8 million tax increase.
These errors are a good example of why one-party control of state government is bad for Minnesotans. We need balance at the Capitol so that family budgets and our job creators are not left out of important conversations. Democrats and their out-of-touch-policies are irresponsible and unaffordable for Minnesotans.
Education Updates ?
The Education Finance Committee recently received an update from the Department of Education regarding their non-exclusionary discipline policy. This policy is a prime example of what happens when government doesn?t listen to educators. One-size-fits-all mandates tie the hands of educators. We need more local control and fewer bureaucratic mandates so that educators, parents, and school boards can work together to meet the needs of their students. You can watch me deliver comments on this policy in committee here.
Finally, I am pleased that the bill to address the ongoing problems with the School Resource Officer (SRO) language is finally moving again. It was previously stalled in the Public Safety Committee, but after productive bipartisan negotiations with the Majority and stakeholders, the bill is now moving again with the inclusion of two Republican amendments. The Speaker announced shortly after the bill was passed out of Public Safety that it would receive a hearing in Ways & Means on Monday before coming to the floor for a final vote on Monday, March 4. I look forward to supporting the final bill so that we can return 100% of SROs to their schools.
|
