Omnibus Budget Bills
This week, House Democrats unveiled several of their omnibus finance bills. I am disappointed to see so many of them contain language that will raise fees and taxes on hardworking Minnesotans at a time our economy is finally getting back on track after a year plus of the pandemic and lockdowns.
The Taxes Omnibus Bill raises taxes by more than $1 billion and fails to fully protect businesses from Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) tax hikes on forgiven loans. Their bill caps PPP relief at $350,000, meaning many businesses will still be taxed on forgiven PPP loans that were used to pay employees and keep their doors open during an unimaginably difficult year.
Additionally, their transportation bill raises more than $1.5 billion in new taxes and fees. This includes increases in the gas tax, vehicle sales tax, and higher fees for vehicle registration.
The fact is our state budget is in a far stronger position than so many Minnesotans. This is largely due to the state receiving large sums of money from the Federal Government. Rather than coming to struggling Minnesotans and asking for more, we should be putting the one-time funds to use to help them recover, not stand in their way by raising taxes.
The reality is these tax increases are going to be non-starters in the Senate. Our state has $1.6 billion surplus and billions more coming from the federal government. We don't need to be raising taxes on businesses and families, and risk slowing down our economic recovery. The compromise positions at the end of the session will not include these tax hikes—they simply are not needed.
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