Third and Final Committee Deadline
Friday, April 8, 2022, marked the passage of the third and final committee deadline. This is the date by which both legislative bodies must pass all finance bills out of committee. Committees in both the House and Senate spent the week outlining, taking public testimony on, and considering amendments to supplemental appropriation bills. While it is not uncommon for the legislature to pass supplemental appropriation bills in non-budget years, the bills advancing this year are generally larger than usual in light of the record-breaking surplus. The legislature is now on recess this week for Easter-Passover break and will return next week when they will begin passing omnibus bills off the floor.
Senate Republicans & House Democrats Advance Competing Tax Plans
On Thursday, April 7, 2022, the Senate voted on the first piece of Republicans’ tax proposal. Authored by Sen. Carla Nelson (R- Rochester), S.F. 3692 aims at providing broad tax relief by slashing the first-tier individual tax rate from 5.3% to 2.8%. The proposal would cost approximately $3.3 billion in FY 23 and $5 billion in the FY 24-25 biennium. The bill would also exclude social security payments from the definition of taxable income. Many Senate Democrats objected to S.F. 3692, citing a lack of upper-income limits in the bill which would allow high-income individuals and families to benefit from the proposed cuts. The bill passed the Senate on a bipartisan vote of 42-24 before being subsequently laid on the table. The Minnesota Constitution requires that all tax bills must originate in the House of Representatives. The Senate is expected to return after the legislative break and take up a more comprehensive tax proposal.
Authored by Rep. Paul Marquart (DFL- Dilworth), the House omnibus tax bill (H.F. 3669) seeks to target lower-income families for tax relief. Specifically, it issues $325 direct rebate checks to parents for each minor child and expands the dependent care tax credit for parents with children under 5 years old. H.F. 3669 also increases the student loan tax credit and exempts Social Security income from taxes for certain lower-income households. H.F. 3669 was passed out of the House Tax Committee on Thursday, April 7, 2022, and is expected to head to the floor after the Easter-Passover break.
The Independence-Alliance Party Jumps in the Governor’s Race
On Thursday, April 7, 2022, the Independence-Alliance Party—the successor of the political party that helped elect former Gov. Jessie Ventura—announced that Hugh McTavish will represent the party as its newest gubernatorial candidate. An author, inventor, and pharmaceutical leader, McTavish cited Gov. Walz’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis as a primary motivator for seeking the position.
McTavish is the second “third-party candidate” and the 9th overall challenger to Gov. Tim Walz, to declare their candidacy. Like the Forward-Party MN, which announced former radio host Cory Hepola as its candidate in March, the Minnesota Independence-Alliance Party does not have major party status in Minnesota. State election law will require McTavish to get at least 2,000 signatures of support to make it on the main ballot in November.