As the May 19 legislative deadline approaches, and we enter the final stretch of the 2025 session, the single most important task ahead of us is passing a responsible, balanced budget. With that in mind, let’s take a step back and take a look at where we stand.
Two years ago, Minnesota had a record $18 billion surplus. I supported using the surplus to provide significant tax relief for working families, seniors, and small businesses, help for nursing homes and disability service providers, and other bipartisan efforts, like investments in local schools.
Instead, the entire surplus was spent. Not only that, but taxes and fees were increased by another $10 billion, driving up government spending by nearly 40%. It was too much, too fast, and simply put, unsustainable. Unfortunately, we’re seeing the consequences now.
Minnesota is now in a structural deficit and facing a $6 billion deficit in the next biennium, which means the state is spending more than it’s taking in.
It’s time to restore fiscal responsibility by balancing the budget without cutting critical services or pushing costs onto local schools and communities. We can start by reducing fraud, waste, and abuse in government spending.
In recent years, at least $500 million has been identified as fraudulent spending in Minnesota. Minnesotans work too hard to see our tax dollars wasted or stolen by bad actors. That’s why I support stronger oversight, transparency, and reforms to make sure tax dollars are actually going where they’re supposed to go. We’ve proposed whistleblower protections, tighter rules for state grants, and new safeguards to prevent the kind of fraud schemes we’ve seen in the past. Additionally, at least another $600 million in wasteful or unnecessary spending has been identified. That is over $1 billion in fraud, waste, and abuse. And that is only what has been identified so far.
Not only has spending been out of control, but the unfunded mandates keep stacking up too. I’ve long been a strong supporter of our local schools, counties, and cities, including preserving local control. While they all received more funding in the last budget cycle, they also had several unfunded mandates passed down to them, resulting in local budget challenges, and in many cases, higher property taxes. Another focus for me this session is to ease some of these unfunded mandates.
While I’m supportive of reducing government spending, I do not support cuts that will negatively impact nursing homes or disability service providers. I believe one of the fundamental roles of our government is to help support our most vulnerable citizens, which is why I was disappointed to see the governor’s proposed budget includes cuts to nursing homes and disability services. Instead of cutting these services, we should prioritize them.
A few other issues I’m working on include collaborating with a local family to add Metachromatic Leukodystrophy (MLD) to Minnesota’s newborn screening list, fully eliminating state income taxes on social security benefits, providing additional support for rural EMS services, and legalizing sports betting.
In the final weeks of the session, the legislature has a responsibility to balance the budget by restoring fiscal responsibility. This means focusing on the basics: a balanced budget, real accountability, support for our schools, and care for the people who need it most. Folks expect and deserve a government that puts Minnesotans First.