Watch Senator Miller present the amendment during the debate.

(ST. PAUL) – During floor debate on the Senate Tax bill on Tuesday, Senator Jeremy Miller (R-Winona) offered an amendment that would automatically return a portion of future state budget surpluses back to taxpayers if the Legislature and governor fail to provide tax relief.

The amendment was modeled after his Minnesota Refund Program proposal. Under that bill, if the November revenue forecast projects a budget surplus, 75% of that surplus would be allocated to the Minnesota Refund Account. The Legislature and governor will then have until March 1 of the following year to pass and sign a tax relief package into law using the funds in the account. If a tax relief bill is not signed into law by the deadline, the funds in the Minnesota Refund Account will be automatically distributed to taxpayers in the form of rebate checks.  

Had the proposal been in law at the time of the November 2022 forecast, 2.2 million couples would have qualified for a refund. Married couples filing a joint return would have received a check of roughly $5,100, while all other qualifying filers would have received approximately $2,550.

“Minnesota has had a series of massive budget surpluses, but the folks who created these surpluses haven’t seen any significant relief,” Miller said. “The state continues to over-collect from taxpayers while record rates of inflation continue to increase the cost of virtually every good and service we use. I introduced the Minnesota Refund Program this year to incorporate ideas from Democrats and Republicans. It would put taxpayers first, and deliver a significant amount of money straight into the pockets of hardworking Minnesotans.”

The tax bill, which passed on a 34-33 party-line vote with all Democrats voting yes and Republicans voting no, failed to deliver the full elimination of state income taxes on Social Security benefits. The bill includes a smaller income tax credit rebate of $279 for single filers and married persons filing a separate return, or $558 for head of household, married couples filing jointly, and surviving spouse filers.  Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the tax bill was the last-minute addition of a $1.2 billion tax increase. This mandatory worldwide tax is the first in the nation and in fact, the first in the world of its kind. It’s a new tax on companies that do business in Minnesota and also have a global footprint.