State Senator Michelle Benson (R-Ham Lake) today expressed her frustration at Gov. Mark Dayton for his decision to veto critical supplemental spending and tax reform proposals that passed the legislature this year.
“Governor Dayton’s decision to veto these bills will be disastrous for thousands of Minnesotans,” said Senator Benson. “He vetoed money to help keep our kids safe at schools, to help get the opioid crisis under control, to help people facing mental health emergencies, to help rebuild roads and bridges, to help working Minnesotans keep more of the money they earn, and to help people with disabilities.”
“Compromise is about a give-and-take to find the best possible result,” added Senator Benson. “We adopted the vast majority of the changes the governor asked for, but it wasn’t enough. Unfortunately, in his last term he wants to get his ‘way’ more than he wants to help Minnesotans who are struggling.”
The tax conformity package would have protected 99.8% of Minnesotans from tax increases, and cuts taxes for 82% of filers. The relief falls squarely on the middle class by preserving important deductions and lowering the first-tier income tax rate. Because of Gov. Dayton’s veto, 969,490 tax filers will see increases.
The supplemental spending bill would have made adjustments to last year’s comprehensive state budget. Some notable items in the bill included:
- $28 million for school safety, which schools could have used to hire school counselors, develop mental health programming, make safety improvements to school buildings, hire School Resource Officers, and more.
- It created a foster care sibling bill of rights and extended state funding for children’s residential programs, to protect the welfare of at-risk children and foster care kids
- It combatted the opioid addiction epidemic by requiring doctors to use the Prescription Monitoring Program, provided grants for opioid abuse prevention programs, and helped paramedics provide follow up care for opioid overdose patients.
- It made health care pricing more transparent by avoiding hidden costs and saving people money on prescription drugs.
- It helped students with college costs via workforce development scholarships for students entering high-demand occupations, student loan debt counseling, loan forgiveness for agricultural educators, and more affordable textbooks.
- It enhanced penalties for the production and sale of child pornography, particularly when the victims are children under age 13.
- It increased penalties for distracted driving.
- It protected election security with upgrades to the voter registration system through the Help America Vote Act.
- It protected Minnesotans’ personal information from thieves and criminals by improving cyber security.