Dear Friends and Neighbors, 

This year’s Session went into overtime, as all the budgets had not been finished by the last day of Session.  While many budget numbers had been agreed to, the details behind those numbers including some House policy provisions did not have agreement.  When an agreement is reached, the bills take hours to draft, process, and read.

There were many changes at the Capitol.  First the newly restored Capitol building reopened. In 2013, my office was in room 317 on the East side of the Capitol.  I had a great view of the Cathedral but access was limited to two slow elevators and a small back staircase.  On more than one occasion, it was raining inside the building when I got off the elevator.  That space is now a gathering / meeting space with a beautiful skylight! With the restoration, there is nearly 40,000 square feet of new or restored public space in the Capitol, with new meeting rooms, gallery space, and expanded dining space for visitors to use. I encourage you to visit St. Paul and take a tour of it, it is beautiful.  Tour information can be found at www.mnhs.org/capitol.  Watch for more information about the Grand Reopening happening August 11-13.  

The next big change was losing the majority in the Senate.  The Senate Republicans won a 1 seat majority in the November election. My first Session at the legislature was in the minority.  Being in the minority seems to be more about defense, rather than offense.  When we were in the majority the last four years, I worked to advance a progressive agenda, this year I spent a lot of time and energy to stop regressive policies - many targeted at Minneapolis.

The Session started off hot when Republicans began introducing bills that aimed to take away the first amendment rights of protestors, prevent undocumented immigrants from getting licenses, eliminate environmental protections, and preempt local governments from enacting their own policies and ordinances. I am grateful for all your calls and emails explaining your positions on these bills.  Your advocacy and presence at the Capitol – especially at the end of session - helped us defeat some of these provisions, but unfortunately being the minority hindered our success.

While it was more difficult to get bills passed, I am still proud of some of the work we did this year.  I authored approximately 65 bills, and around 20 of them became law. Some of them were issues that will help counties deal with tax forfeited land and one ensures continuing review of hydro power plans on the Mississippi.  I also had the pleasure of being the DFL lead on the Agriculture, Rural Development, and Housing Finance Committee.  While Senate District 60 could hardly be considered rural and does not have a lot of big Ag, we discussed a lot of policies that affect every corner of our state – notably the shortage of affordable housing.  I was also on the Environment and Natural Resources Finance Committee and the Tax Committee. 

At the start of this Session we had a projected $1.2 billion dollar surplus and a nationally recognized budget reserve that helped restore our AAA Bond Rating. However, after this year’s tax and spending bills, the financial stability of our state could be at risk. There are some good provisions in the Budget Bills and tax relief for some seniors, college students, and small business in the Tax Bill. However there are concerns, the size of the $658 million tax bill grows substantially in the future years, and many programs that have continuing costs were funded with one-time money.  When I started at the legislature in 2012 we had a deficit, and I hope we do not return to those days in the near future.

The Governor signed all the Budget Bills and the Tax Bill.  I voted for the Agriculture Budget but did not vote for any of the other Budget Bills or the Tax Bill.  The Budget Bills contained some good provisions but also some troublesome provisions.  We strive to be transparent and have an open process that allows public input on bills during committee meetings and conference committees meetings.  In the past few years, I have been on or at Conference Committee meetings with a room full of people testifying on the issues.   Unfortunately there was not a lot of public testimony taken during Conference Committees this year.  We voted on some of the bills in the middle of the night. 

The Republicans put a line in the 100 page State Departments Budget Bill stating the Revenue Department budget was effective when the Tax Bill was enacted.  The Governor was not aware and did not agree to this language – and was not happy about it.  He had reservations about the size of the Tax Bill but did not want to shut down the Revenue Department by vetoing the Tax Bill so he line item vetoed the Legislature’s Budget in the State Departments Budget Bill to bring us back to the table to discuss some provisions. 

Without a budget appropriation, the Senate’s funding could run out by September.  The Republican majorities decided to sue the Governor in Court over the issue.  I’ve heard constitutional experts discuss whether both the Revenue Department funding tied to the Tax Bill and the Legislature funding veto violated separation of powers.  The Governor sent the legislative leaders a letter requesting they meet to resolve the situation.  We may have another Special Session – stay tuned!

Below is a short summary of some of the bills.  I will provide additional information and more detail on some of the larger bills, especially their local impacts, in the coming weeks.  

It is an honor and privilege to serve you as your state senator. I appreciate working with you on many issues and projects to improve our neighborhoods.  Thank you for your phone calls, emails, letters, and advocacy at the Capitol – it helps me represent you.  I will not be in the office everyday but you can still reach me, or my assistant Beth Johnston, at 651-296-7809 or via email if we can help you in any way. 

Have a safe and enjoyable summer!

--Kari Dziedzic 

Agriculture

It was disappointing that the bill did not include provisions on treated seeds that could help pollinators, but the language that would have severely restricted the Department of Agriculture’s  to regulate pesticides was modified.  The bill does contain funding for urban agriculture.

Capital Investment

After last year’s bonding bill failed at the last minute, many people have been anxious to find a compromise on a bonding bill. The final bill to pass during Special Session was a $987.9 million bonding bill.  The compromise bill included $120 million for the University of Minnesota, funding HEAPR, UMD’s Chemical Sciences and Advanced Materials Science Building, the Health Sciences Education Facility, and the Plant Growth Research Facility. It also included funding for the 10th Avenue Bridge, metro parks, the Como Zoo, and the People’s Center in Cedar Riverside.

E12 Education

This year’s education budget included an increase of 2% each year on the basic funding formula, and additional funding for voluntary pre-k and early learning scholarships. It also requires schools to test for lead in their water.  The Perpich Center for Arts Education open will remain open.  The bill contained controversial policy provisions around teacher licensure and layoff requirements.  I have heard from neighbors who have taught in other states how hard it is to get licensed in MN but believe there was better compromise language on this issue that should have been included instead of the language in the bill so I did not vote for this bill.

Environment and Energy

This year was an uphill battle working to keep some of our environmental protections. Despite being a national leader in the development of clean energy, much of the proposed legislation would move us backwards. Fortunately, we were able protect our water through additional lead testing for drinking water and maintaining the Governor’s buffer program.  The final bill also included more adequate funding for our treasured and highly used State Parks and Trails. 

Health & Human Services

This 700 page bill was posted only a few hours before we voted on it at 1:30am. It was the second to the last bill we passed.  There are some new good proposals funded in the bill but it also shifts program costs to counties.  Hennepin County could see a $20 M unfunded mandate. It also could create future budget problems because it funds on-going costs with one-time money.

Higher Education

The higher education budget provided a $210 million budget increase – a smaller increase compared to the last two higher education budgets. There is usually parity between the University of MN and MnState funding but this year the funding split is unbalanced; of the total increase, the U received 33% and MnState received 66%.  In the past, that funding was closer to a 47 - 53 split. Even as the bill woefully underfunds the systems, there is still a requirement for a tuition freeze.  Without funding the tuition freeze, colleges will be forced to cut programs.  70% of the jobs of the future will require post-secondary education.  Underfunding higher education not only hurts students – it hurts Minnesota’s economy.  

Internet Privacy Protections

Despite the near unanimous support for legislation that would protect consumers’ data from being sold by internet providers, I am disappointed that this was not included in the final bills that passed.  This consumer protection policy came after the federal government allowed for providers to sell data.  While Minnesota has strict data privacy laws, many of them haven't been updated with to the newer technological advances.

 Jobs and Economic Development

In 2016, it was reported that Minnesota’s significant income disparities were growing. Alarmed, the Senate DFL took action to enact $35 million in funding for equity programs across the state. This year, the Republican-led legislature cut equity programs by $7 million and phased out direct appropriations for competitive grant programs – some for local job training programs.  The bill funded youth employment but at a reduced level.   The bill also contained the provision banning local governments from enacting plastic bag bans. 

Judiciary

The final bill provided more adequate funds for the Courts.  Despite bipartisan objections from the Senate, it also contained controversial policy including language restricting immigrant driver’s license.

Preemption

This proposal was in reaction to ordinances in Minneapolis and St. Paul that required qualifying workers to have access to paid leave benefits. This legislation is also referred to as the Uniform Labor Standards Act, because it would not allow any city or local government to raise minimum wage or require employee benefits.  The Republican majorities in the House and Senate tacked several provisions, including the Pension bill, to preemption bill in the special session in an attempt to entice DFL support. No DFL senators voted for the bill and the Governor vetoed the bill. 

Real ID

The Legislature passed a neutral REAL ID bill that will allow Minnesotans to board domestic flights without needing additional documents like a passport. Minnesotans were coming down to crunch time as the next compliance deadline is January 2018.  Thanks to the hard work of the Senate, there was no unnecessary immigration policy included in the bill. The department will have to begin issuing REAL IDs by October 2018.  I voted for the final bill and am pleased that it passed. 

State Departments 

The State Department bill funds all the state agencies, and the executive and legislative branches.  This bill contained the controversial language linking the Tax bill's passage to the Department of Revenue's funding. Because of that language, Governor Dayton line item vetoed the appropriation for the House and the Senate. To see his veto letter click here. Despite the House's adamant position to arbitrarily cut all state agencies by 7.5%, this did not happen. However, the bill does not fund cyber security updates- putting Minnesota at risk. 

Taxes

The legislature passed a $657.9 million tax bill for the 2018-2019 biennium. The bill spends $772.4 million in 2020-2021 and its costs continue to grow beyond that date.  Highly controversial private-school voucher language was removed from the final agreement, but also controversial tobacco tax cuts were retained. Although much of the tax relief, especially for seniors, students, and small business, had bipartisan support, I did not support the bill.  I dislike that a majority of the tax relief goes to wealthy taxpayers and big businesses while relief for average Minnesota families remains rather small.  The bill includes a $500 tax credit for student loans - this is a first-in-the-nation credit that Senate DFLers designed last year.

Transportation

While I had hoped we would pass a transportation budget that provided long term funding for our roads, bridges, and transit - instead the budget passed shifts money from our schools, courts, equity funding, and human services by using general fund dollars.  The bill allocates $70 million to the Met Council, which leaves the agency with a $15 million funding gap for transit going forward. This will likely mean cuts to service or fare increases in order to make up for the lack of funding.  I was ok with some limited one time general fund spending for transportation but like the tax bill, this is not a sustainable transportation bill.  It does not fund the full need for roads or transit now and has no way to fund them in the future.