Daily Digest: How big of a tax cut?
Good morning and welcome to Tuesday. Here's the Digest.
1. One issue tops the list of disagreements between Republicans in the Legislature and DFL Gov. Mark Dayton. “The governor knows that we are expecting to pass a good tax bill with tax relief for all Minnesotans, especially middle-class Minnesotans,” said House Majority Leader Joyce Peppin, R-Rogers. The $1.15 billion tax bill that Republicans want is too big for Dayton, whose tax bill proposal is just $300 million. Dayton says he would rather have more money to spend on early childhood education, colleges and other budget areas. “That’s my priority. Theirs is tax cut, tax cut and raiding the general fund for the transportation bill. So, we’ve got big differences, but we have two weeks to work it out,” Dayton said. (MPR News)
2. Republican lawmakers moved late Monday evening to send Dayton their own preferred budgets — abandoning, for now, attempts to find compromises in crafting Minnesota’s two-year, $46 billion budget. If Republicans send Dayton their plans, the governor will likely veto them. Dayton and his commissioners have broadly and specifically criticized their proposals — both for their lack of spending on programs he believes are critical and for policy provisions included alongside the money. The turn toward confrontation comes with just under two weeks left in the legislative session, and just under two months until any unfunded parts of the Minnesota state government would shut down. It immediately follows a brief meeting Monday afternoon, when Dayton made written offers to Republicans on several of the smaller parts of the budget. (Pioneer Press)
3. Evolving legislation under which nonprofit HMOs in Minnesota could convert into for-profit health insurers has sparked a debate over laws governing what assets the new businesses should be able to keep. Earlier this year, the Legislature eliminated a 40-year ban on for-profit HMOs in Minnesota as part of a bill to provide premium relief for those who buy health insurance in the state’s troubled market for individual policies. Critics at the time said the bill lacked important consumer protections to make sure charitable funds currently controlled by nonprofit HMOs would not be wrongly shifted into for-profit hands. Republicans in the state Senate responded with a bill backed by DFL Attorney General Lori Swanson that required regulatory approval of HMO conversions, including a broad definition of the “public benefit assets” that would be subject to review. However, Republican lawmakers changed the legislation last week. (Star Tribune)
4. Minnesota Supreme Court Associate Justice David Stras was nominated by President Donald Trump to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday. The nomination is subject to Senate confirmation. DFL Sen. Al Franken, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said in a statement he would take a close look at Stras' record. He criticized a nomination process that he said "relied heavily on guidance from far-right ... special interest groups." Stras' departure would give Gov. Dayton another seat to fill on a state Supreme Court where his appointees already hold a 4-3 majority. (AP via MPR News)
5. Gov. Dayton was included on a media list of Democrats interested in running for president in 2020. Apparently it was an alternative fact. “I’m honored to be included on this very distinguished list,” Dayton said in a statement. “But there is zero possibility that I would run for president in 2020.” The 70-year-old governor’s name is not the only Minnesotan listed as someone ‘who might run’ who is not worth listing. The Hill also included Sen. Al Franken, who has said “I’m not running for president,” and U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison, who has said “You can pretty safely bet I will not be running for president in 2020.” The outlet also listed U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who was in Iowa over the weekend. (Pioneer Press)
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.