As February begins, it’s time to start considering the upcoming Legislative Session. Since 2024 is a Bonding Year, not only does that mean session starts a bit later on February 12, but it also means the main focus of the year is putting together a bonding bill, despite Democrats already passing multiple bonding bills last year. The Democrat trifecta also showed they have no qualms when it comes to pushing their social agenda on the entire state. So much so that they ran through nearly the entire surplus, with plans to spend even more this year.

I’m sure most folks remember the end of 2022 when it was announced that Minnesota had an unprecedented surplus – nearly $19 billion before accounting for inflation. Minnesotans were expecting tax relief. Unfortunately, that money has all but been spent up by Democrats, funding extreme and costly legislation. All those projects were financially underestimated when they were passed, and now costs are exploding. Free school meals, a paid sick time mandate, and funding for the State Office Building renovations… All over budget. To make matters worse, because of Democrats’ out-of-control spending, Minnesota is barreling towards a deficit. Republicans tried to sound the alarm on this repeatedly, and now we’re seeing the results of their catastrophic spending.

One of the top priorities this session will require taking a hard look at the current spending and doing our best to rein it in. Senate Republicans have always been committed to fiscal responsibility – after all, these are taxpayer dollars that are being spent. Since we’re looking at a deficit on the horizon, the legislature needs to get our state’s finances in order. If this doesn’t happen, you can certainly bet Democrats will continue raising taxes to fund their pet projects.

Another issue that has already reared its head is the “End-of-Life Options” bill. Democrats have forced hearings on this bill, showing how interested they are in continuing with a culture of death in their single-party control. Rather than providing treatment and care for the vulnerable, terminally ill, depressed, and frail, they propose a sanitized “medical aid in dying” approach that just masks a hidden agenda to undermine a person’s right to life. We’ve seen the horrifying results of these assisted suicide laws in other states and countries, like doctor shopping by family members to end the life of a loved one, flimsy psychological referrals, and even expanding qualifications to include economic status. A person’s right to life does not depend on their quality of life, mental health, or income. This bill is an extremely dangerous policy that will pit Minnesotans against one another and divide families facing challenging situations. This is something Republicans will be fighting against.

Lastly, as stated before, it’s a bonding year. That typically means many bonding projects will be heard, and some projects will be chosen to be included in a bonding bill at the end of session. It’s important that we address crumbling infrastructure, but Democrats are not interested in doing that. They already passed multiple bonding bills last session, and those bills funded numerous metro projects and funded over 54 non-profits. They put special interests above real needs, and I believe we’ll see more of the same this year.

There are many topics that will be on the agenda this year. Senate Republicans will work hard to hold the line by pushing for tax relief and funding for critical infrastructure, but Democrats have shown they have no interest in working across the aisle. They’ve previously opted to push through hyper-partisan legislation, and I’m concerned we can expect more of the same this year. We need to do what is best for Minnesota families, not special interest groups. I encourage folks to follow along closely this year and remain engaged in the process. Minnesotans should not be stuck footing the bill for bad Democrat policies.