On Wednesday, Governor Mark Dayton vetoed the tax conformity-emergency education compromise plan as well as the omnibus supplemental spending agreement that was sent to his desk on Sunday by the legislature. This was incredibly disappointing, especially since he seems to not recall WHY he chose to veto both bills.
Governor Dayton’s veto of tax conformity, school safety, and emergency funding for schools will hurt Minnesota families. It’s truly disappointing and unfortunate that time and time again the governor rejects compromise solutions.
The compromise plan included an average of $96 in new per-pupil spending across the state, education dollars the governor repeatedly called an emergency. These schools will now receive no new money due to this veto by the governor. Speaker Daudtdetails the frustrationof working with Governor Dayton here.
A partial list of those affected by Governor Dayton’s vetoes include:
K-12 students who won’t benefit from school safety funding
Victims of elder abuse
People with disabilities, and their caretakers, who would be affected by a 7% cut to the Disability Waiver Rate System
Victims of opioid addiction, and medical professionals
Victims of distracted driving
Special education and Head Start students
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 difficulty when 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
More Details on Vetoed Bills
The tax conformity and education plan were part of a compromise effort between legislative Republicans and Governor Dayton. The federal conformity plan protected taxpayers, simplified Minnesota’s tax code, and provided the first income tax rate cut in nearly 20 years. It also made available more than $225 million to help students—nearly $100 million more than what the governor requested—provided new money and additional flexibility for school districts to address budget shortfalls.
In the supplemental budget bill, House and Senate Republicans compromised with the governor—more than 60 percent of the objections raised by the governor were removed or amended—meeting him more than halfway. The bill contained shared priorities like ensuring safe schools, repairing roads and bridges, tackling the opioid epidemic, protecting aging and vulnerable adults, and preventing a cut to caregivers of disabled Minnesotans.
The bills we sent to the governor build on the tremendously successful accomplishments from the 2017 session that included the largest tax cut in nearly two decades, the largest investment in roads and bridges in state history without a gas tax increase, major funding boosts for education, and reforms to lower health care costs and boost health care choices for Minnesota families.
Again, I am so disappointed with the actions of Governor Dayton.
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