Welcome
Happy New Year to all and welcome to the first few weeks of legislative session at the Minnesota State Capitol. This session has been off to a fast start with the Democrats pushing some of their main priorities through committee early. Some of the big topics we have already seen include abortion, drivers license for all, tax conformity, and others.
With the Democrats holding the trifecta, Governor’s Office, House, and Senate, they will be attempting to move quickly and capitalize on their numbers. Their majority in the Senate is 34 votes to 33, meaning there is much work to be done for us in the Senate minority. Working with my colleagues across the aisle will be my priority, as always. This will be necessary this session if we hope to accomplish our goals, and I will urge my caucus members to think the same.
State/Local Government and Veterans Committee
In the State/Local Government and Veterans Committee we recently heard SF1, the PRO act, dealing with abortions. I am in favor of some common sense exceptions such as rape or life threatening circumstance, but I do feel that unborn children have value and are worth protecting, and the late stage abortions the DFL supports cause me concern. I remain committed to working to find consensus around common-sense protections and support for both mothers and babies, and have always supported policies to ensure all mothers and babies have the care they need throughout every stage of life. Likewise, we should make a stronger effort to reduce unwanted pregnancies and help mothers facing hardships. I think these are areas of common ground; areas where most Minnesotans will agree. It’s disappointing that right out of the gate, the DFL’s top priority is to rush extremist abortion laws through the process. This is a complicated, serious issue, and it deserves a thorough debate.
Tax Conformity
Early on during session, the Senate passed off the floor a tax bill that will provide more than $100 million in tax relief for Minnesotans, particularly to people who were hit the hardest by Covid-19 business closures. Senate Republicans approved tax conformity last year, so I am proud to vote yes again on this tax relief bill once again. But there is still much to be done. With inflation and prices continuing to rise for many residents, and one of the highest tax burdens in the country, we must continue to find ways to lower taxes and help ease the financial strain that families are facing.
Senate Republicans offered two amendments that were rejected by Senate Democrats on party-line votes. The first would have fully eliminated the state’s tax on Social Security benefits. The second would have provided every Minnesota income taxpayer with an income tax rate cut by eliminating the first-tier income tax bracket.
Transportation Committee
On January 18, the Senate’s Transportation Committee heard a bill to make driver’s licenses available to all Minnesotans, regardless of their immigration status. As the committee’s lead Republican, I did a deep dive into the bill.
It’s actually an idea I support in principle. Making driver’s licenses available to illegal immigrants would help a lot of hardworking folks in our area, and police officers support it because it will keep our roads safer and help them verify identities. Those are good things.
Unfortunately, when you look at the bill in depth you won’t see a common sense approach to this complicated issue. You’ll see an expansive bill that goes far, far beyond a simple public safety fix. It presents real national security threats, it destroys the meaning and value of a driver’s license, it opens up opportunities for fraud and abuse, and it compromises our elections.
The bill still has several more committee hearings ahead of it, so we’ll keep working to make it better. But if Democrats continue to ignore our legitimate concerns, I will be voting no even though the idea itself has merit. We still have to make sure we are smart about these things.
As always, thank you to my constituents who helped get me elected. I am proud to serve my community and Minnesota. Please reach out to the office if you have any concerns.
Sincerely,
Deputy Minority Leader
Minnesota Senate, District 19