Friends and neighbors,

I previously shared that Democrats are looking to fast-track a bonding bill this legislative session. And that is exactly what they did this week when the bill was forced to the Senate floor for a vote. 

The bonding bill is the only legislation that requires a 3/5 majority vote, which is 41 votes, and required 7 Republican senators to vote for the bill. It failed, however, to garner even one Republican vote. This is because, halfway into session, we have yet to see Democrats make any significant movement on tax relief. This is a stance–tax relief before bonding–that Senate Republicans have been clear on for weeks and why I was unable to support this bill at this time.

I and my fellow Senator Republicans know that there are many worthy local infrastructure projects that we can and should bond this session. But before we look to borrow even more taxpayer dollars through a bonding bill, it is critical to provide real and enduring tax relief.

Minnesota continues to sit on a $17.5 billion surplus and it’s long overdue to give back this money to taxpayers. And fully eliminating Minnesota’s burdensome tax on Social Security income is an important way to achieve just that. This is an issue that I regularly hear about from constituents, and our historic budget surplus signals that state government has more than enough funds to do away with this tax.

Even though the bonding bill did not pass at this time, the Senate immediately voted to reconsider the bill and lay it on the table. This is a procedural move that allows the bill to be brought up again without having to go through the committee process.

Senate Republicans stand committed to passing a bonding bill, and at the same time, passing meaningful tax relief for our constituents.

Constituents at the Capitol

This week, I had the privilege to meet with a group from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Debt Management Center. One of the members, Rodney McDowell, is a constituent from Buffalo. We had a conversation about how elected officials work to benefit our Nation’s Veterans. And after our meeting, the group also had the opportunity to observe a Senate session. 

Thank you for visiting the Capitol and for sharing more about your department’s important work on behalf of our Veterans!

Contact My Office

I want to hear from you, my constituents, on issues that are important to you. Please feel free to reach out to my office with any concerns or ideas you may have. I will continue to keep your thoughts and concerns in mind as legislation comes before me. You can contact my office at sen.bruce.anderson@senate.mn or 651-296-5981.

Sincerely,

Bruce Anderson