ST. PAUL – Minnesota State Senator Warren Limmer (R- Maple Grove) returned to the Capitol this month for the opening of the 2024 session of the Minnesota Legislature.
“It always feels like a new day when the legislature returns to session,” Limmer said. “Serving the people in Maple Grove, Corcoran, Greenfield, Independence, Loretto, Maple Plain, and Medina is an honor and I’m looking forward to the ideas and discussion we will have this year.”
STATE SPENDING GONE WILD… TAX INCREASES TO FOLLOW
A report issued by the office of Minnesota Management and Budget last December projected a small budget surplus for the upcoming session and a whopping $2.5 billion deficit in the following budget cycle. “Minnesotans are still reeling from last session’s increased spending of 40% and $10 billion in new taxes on nearly everyone,” Limmer said. “Our families are suffering under the high taxes, and we’ve heard from schools their funding increases were completely wiped out by more than 60 new government mandates now causing budget constraints. We need bipartisan, commons sense solutions to these problems in order to keep Minnesota a great place to live, work, and start a business.”
SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS
“Pursuing a radical agenda the legislature passed changes last year to the Student Resource Officer program resulted in a messy, unclear law. Many law enforcement agencies disagreed and had to pull their officers out of schools. I would hope there can be bipartisan support to get this fix passed and return our SROs to the schools to keep students safe,” Limmer said. Recent student surveys show 90% of students with an SRO support keeping SROs in their school.
Limmer previously called for both a special session and an informational hearing during the interim to address the issue, both of which were rebuffed by Democrats in control of state government. Limmer is working to fix a law Democrats changed last year which resulted in school resource officers (SRO) being removed from schools across the state, and relieving schools and businesses of some of the numerous new mandates passed last session.
GOOD GOVERNMENT CHANGES
Since the state budget passed last year, this year is an opportunity to look at good government policies. Increasing government accessibility and transparency and holding government accountable will be key in the coming years as major public policy changes are implemented.
Some fixes from last year are already in motion as well, for example, correcting a drafting error that used an old tax rate and would result in that state collecting $350 million more from taxpayers. Both the House and Senate are expected to pass the tax fix bill quickly.
Senator Limmer returns as the Ranking Minority member on the Judiciary and Public Safety committee as well as serving on the Elections committee and the Rules Committee.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Constituents are encouraged to contact Senator Johnson with any questions, concerns, or feedback:
- Email: Sen.Warren.Limmer@senate.mn
- Phone: 651-296-2159
STAY INFORMED!
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