Democrats should compromise so we can deliver tax relief and a responsible bonding bill
By Senator John Jasinski
Friends and neighbors,
You may have heard about the recent bonding bill debacle in the Minnesota State Senate. After 6-and-a-half years in the Senate, I am also sure you are aware of my strong support of using smart bonding to pay for critical infrastructure projects around the state.
That commitment is as strong as ever, but I have been absolutely clear for months that our top priority for the upcoming session must be tax relief for Minnesotans who are struggling with inflation.
When Democrats introduced their bonding bill in February, we made our position well known – any bonding bill was dead on arrival until we start to return the state’s $19 billion surplus to taxpayers. We communicated our position clearly and repeatedly. However, instead of working together to provide relief to Minnesotans, Democrats ignored us and forced a vote on the bonding bill, knowing it was doomed to fail. It was cynical political gamesmanship.
As I said, I am a strong advocate for bonding, and I will continue to fight for the critical local projects that our communities need, like water infrastructure projects in Owatonna-Medford, Morristown, and Waseca, as well as local road and bridge programs and rural economic development programs. At the end of the day, I believe we will get those done. But we must address tax relief first.
Despite our best efforts to collaborate with the Democrats, they have refused to engage in constructive dialogue. In an underhanded move, they even went behind our backs, contacting local cities in Republican districts to pressure them into calling us instead of having face-to-face meetings like professionals. I have never seen or experienced anything like it during my time in the Senate. This manipulation ruins relationships, damages trust, obstructs progress, and creates unnecessary conflict.
To make matters worse, after the bonding bill failed as we told them it would, Democrats retaliated against residents of Republican districts by removing bills that benefit our communities from a scheduled committee hearing. When pressed, the committee chair acknowledged that this move was an act of retribution for the bonding bill’s defeat.
I cannot emphasize enough how disheartening and frustrating it is to see this type of vindictive behavior in our legislative process. Minnesotans deserve better.
I remain committed to advocating for both responsible bonding and tax relief. I believe that we can achieve both goals, but only if Democrats are willing to work together in good faith.
I sincerely hope that we can put these obstacles behind us and move forward to pass both a bonding bill and a tax cut bill, benefiting our communities and taxpayers. But for that to happen, the Democrats must be willing to sincerely and honestly work with us for the best interests of Minnesotans.
Contact me:
If you have any questions about any issues we are working on at the legislature, feel free to contact me any time at sen.john.jasinski@senate.mn or 651-296-0284.
And you can always get the latest news from St. Paul on my Facebook page at fb.com/SenatorJohnJasinski.
It is a privilege to serve you!