ST. PAUL, MN – Today, Senate Majority Leader Jeremy Miller (R-Winona) and Deputy Leader Karin Housley (R- Stillwater) announced an agreement with the House to stop devastating tax increases on small businesses and provide meaningful bonuses to frontline workers. The agreement resolves the differences between repaying and refilling the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Trust Fund and providing bonuses to workers who worked the frontline during the COVID pandemic.

“This is a good deal for Minnesotans. Stopping the unnecessary tax hikes on our small businesses and showing our appreciation for frontline workers were some of our top priorities this session,” Miller said.“I’m happy to see the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund debt completely paid off and refilled without an additional cost to businesses or workers who have already sacrificed so much.”

The agreement means $2.7 billion will be used to pay off the loan from the federal government and refill the UI fund to its necessary balance using mostly federal funds. As part of the agreement, $500 million from the surplus will go to frontline workers who were most at risk during the COVID pandemic. As the Senate proposed two weeks ago, the House DFL will choose which workers will get bonuses.

“Our people are our biggest asset, and the workers who took big risks to keep us safe during the pandemic deserve our thanks and gratitude,” Housley said.“This bonus payment will let them know that we appreciate what they have done, and we recognize they made sacrifices when they were asked to.”

The agreement spends the remaining federal ARPA funds available to Minnesota for COVID, which otherwise would have been available to Gov. Walz on June 1 if left unspent.