On Wednesday May 23, Governor Dayton issued his vetoes of the legislature’s Tax Conformity and Relief Bill and Supplemental Appropriations Bill. In tandem, these pieces of legislation would have prevented an unintended tax increase on 99.8% of Minnesotans, lowered taxes for 82% of Minnesotans – mostly lower and middle class, made filing state income taxes less complicated for every Minnesota taxpayer, provided public schools with over $100 million in new safe schools funding, and waived state mandates on $175 million of already existing school revenue for local school boards to use as they see fit. Additionally, the supplemental appropriations bill contained numerous other provisions that cared for Minnesotans, such as battling the opioid epidemic, caring for our elders, help for farm families struggling with mental health issues, protecting the welfare of at-risk children and foster care kids, and so much more.

Even more frustrating, the Senate attempted to initiate a dialogue with the Governor and his executive branch agencies. While there was some movement, the Governor stopped returning communication around 3 PM on Sunday afternoon. After the legislative session concluded, the Governor again engaged in conversations with the Senate, and indicated his willingness to sit down with Senate leadership to discuss the bills that were passed. However, once the Governor returned from his trip to Washington D.C., which he took immediately after the Minnesota legislative session concluded, he vetoed the bills without even notifying Senate leaders.

Now, nearly every Minnesotan will be negatively impacted by Governor Dayton’s actions. For a partial list of Minnesotans who will be affected, please see below:

People affected by Gov. Dayton’s vetoes:

• Victims of elder abuse
• Victims of opioid addiction, and medical professionals
• Victims of distracted driving
• K-12 students who won’t benefit from school safety funding
• Special education and Head Start students
• People with disabilities, and their caretakers, who would be affected by a 7% cut to the Disability Waiver Rate System
• People dealing with MNLARS hassles
• Deputy registrars whose businesses are floundering after MNLARS
• People who need mental health support, particularly farmers and students
• Farmers and agribusinesses that need Section 179 conformity for equipment depreciation
• People who live in rural areas without high-speed internet
• Students who need help to afford college
• People who need job training and businesses that need skilled workers
• Taxpayers who will have a difficult time filing their taxes next year
• Voters concerned about election security
• Minnesotans concerned about privacy, data breaches, and cyber security
• CPAs and tax professionals who will be dealing with very complex tax filings
• Parents looking to find the best school for their children
• Low-income working families who rely on federal child care subsidies
• New teachers who need licenses, and schools who want to hire them
• Children enrolled in Head Start programs
• Schools that need adjustments to fully fund special education
• Patients who care about transparent pricing for health care and prescription drugs
• Startup businesses that depend on the Angel Investor Tax Credit to grow
• And, many more…