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CS




Dear Neighbor,

A one-day special session took place this week after the legislature’s May 19 deadline to adjourn passed with less than half of the state’s next two-year budget approved. The House was set back from the start after House Democrats stayed home the first 23 days of this year’s regular session.

During the special session, House Republicans eliminated free health care for illegal immigrants, made the largest spending cut in state history, rejected tax increases on Minnesota families and more.

After two years of Democrats in full control of the Capitol, the new budget shows House Republicans restored balance in St. Paul by gaining a share of power in an evenly split body. That was especially important after Democrats spent the $18 billion surplus, increased state spending by nearly 40 percent and raised taxes by $10 billion in the last biennium – putting the state on the brink of a $6 billion shortfall.

“House Republicans have focused on restoring some common sense after two years of one party running roughshod over the people in our state with obscene amounts of spending and extreme policies. It’s good we put an end to all that and are getting our state back on track.”

This year, House Republicans defeated proposals to further raise taxes on Minnesota families. Most notably, we prevented the creation of a fifth-tier income tax bracket ($8 billion), blocked the governor’s sales tax increase ($400 million), and stopped the expansion of sales taxes to professional services ($334 million).

Taxpayer-funded health care for illegal immigrants is another issue House Republicans addressed. Enrollment and projected costs have soared since the former trifecta's expansion of MinnesotaCare to include people here illegally took effect just five months ago, causing sustainability concerns. The House passed a bill during the special session making adult illegal immigrants ineligible for the program.

In all, the House approved packages to fund 10 sections of the next state budget during the special session after six passed prior to the regular session adjourning May 19. In total, House Republicans delivered the largest reduction to government spending in state history with $2 billion in budget cuts and, overall, $5 billion less spending than the previous budget.

An energy budget bill that holds the line on both spending and policy was among those to pass during the special session. It provides a necessary course correction following two years of unaffordable and unreliable energy policy under Democrat leadership.

This bill does not push further toward the DFL’s unrealistic climate goals and it does not spend any more money on the DFL’s pet energy projects. While I would have liked to roll back some of the costly measures enacted over the last two years, the fact that we’re stopping the expansion of that extreme agenda is a significant win –especially in a divided House.

Warnings from the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), which has flagged a capacity shortfall that could impact Minnesota’s ability to meet peak electricity demand. Continued reliance on intermittent, weather-dependent energy sources – like wind and solar – could lead to reliability issues similar to those seen in other states.

We are not out of the woods yet in terms of cleaning up the mess the former trifecta left in its wake. But it is clear House Republicans have put Minnesota back on a more sustainable path and we will continue working hard to do even more.

Until next time, please stay in touch and let me know how I can help.

Sincerely,

Chris






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State Rep. Chris Swedzinski
2nd Floor, Centennial Office Building
658 Cedar St., St. Paul, MN 55155
[email protected]
(651) 296-5374







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