April 23, 2007
Invest in Minnesota says time is running out for Minnesota to return to responsible, long-term budget solutions
With only a few weeks left in the 2008 legislative session, Invest in Minnesota says the time is running out for Minnesota to return to the repsonsible, long-term budget solutions it needs.
Invest in Minnesota said it is time for Minnesota to return to a healthier diet -- more vegetables (yes, taxes) fairly raised.Invest in Minnesota points out that, just a few weeks from legislative adjournment, time is running out in the face of projected chronic shortfalls – as much as $1.7 billion in the red a year from now – and so are the accounting gimmicks and the reserves. So voters choosing leaders this fall for 2009 and beyond need to ask them to face up to a glaring fiscal reality: We can’t go on like this. Our experiment with tax cuts and short-changing vital public-sector investment is not working.
For more infornmation, please go to this link on the Invest in Minnesota website: http://tippingpoint.typepad.com/reality_bytes/2008/04/time-to-return.html
Invest in Minnesota also pointed out that since 2003, Gov. Tim Pawlenty has called on Minnesotans to sacrifice to resolve the state’s ongoing budget crisis. The sacrifices have not been shared equally by all Minnesotans and have fallen disproportionately on middle-class, working people.The governor’s continued budget cuts and disinvestments are eroding our once highly regarded education, transportation and health-care systems, the group added.
With yet another budget deficit, the governor is calling for another round of sacrifices. Invest in Minnesota highlights what these sacrifices mean to all Minnesotans at the following link: http://tippingpoint.typepad.com/reality_bytes/2008/04/minnesotas-reve.html
In March, Invest in Minnesota pointed out that Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s proposed budget is bad for people, bad for the economy and fails to stabilize state revenues during a press conference at the state Capitol.
The Invest in Minnesota Campaign is supported by leading labor, faith and nonprofit organizations. The group outlined the following flaws in the governor’s proposed budget:
The governor’s proposal:
- Makes real cuts causing real pain to real people by reneging on the state’s commitment to extend health insurance to more than 20,000 children .
- Hurts the state’s ailing economy by cutting thousands of jobs and disinvesting in higher education and core services.
- Fails as a real solution to the state’s budget problems because it leaves a $1.7 billion projected deficit into the next biennium when real costs of services are included.
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| Marcia Avner (back, far right), public policy director of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits, fielded questions during a press conference Tuesday at the Capitol launching the Invest in Minnesota Campaign. |
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“Ordinarily in a recession, the state extends its help to those hardest hit,” said Brian Rusche, executive director of the Joint Religious Legislative Coalition. “This plan does the opposite. Reducing access to children’s health care, job training, and transportation hurts the very families most affected by the downturn. Why cut the building blocks to success for children and the future workforce?”
“ Minnesota is losing jobs and the governor proposes to cut jobs with his budget proposal,” said Steve Hunter, secretary-treasurer of the Minnesota AFL-CIO. “The governor’s budget proposal is flat out irresponsible. It hurts people, hurts the economy and does not address the revenue shortfall with a revenue solution.”
“We don’t need to take more families off the track to success,” said Marcia Avner, public policy director of the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits. “Our elected officials need to find real solutions to the revenue shortfall. The Invest in Minnesota Campaign will engage the public in a search for solutions to the revenue shortfall during this Legislative Session and the months ahead. Our goal: to solve the revenue shortfall and get Minnesota back on the right track.”
“ Minnesota should be looking for fair ways to raise more revenue instead of cutting and disinvesting,” said Dane Smith, president of Growth & Justice. “There are reasonable and fair revenue options for preserving and even expanding the vital public investments that have always provided a foundation for shared prosperity. The legislature should not give up on those options.”
Invest in Minnesota cited these additional flaws in the governor’s plan:
- Lowering the sales tax rate adds to Minnesota’s revenue shortfall.
- Removing the “foreign operation” tax avoidance loophole helps, but ineffective tax breaks such as those in JOBZ and in income tax cuts for high income households would remain unchanged.
- The 16 percent cut in the renters’ credit raises taxes on hundreds of thousands of renters.
- Raiding the Health Care Access Fund reduces future access to health care and violates the premise of the fund.
Get more information about the Invest in Minnesota Campaign at: www.investinmn.org
