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Headlines : Minnesota, Colorado, California, Maryland, Ohio, Nebraska, Louisiana, Massachusetts
States' Rift on Taxes Widens
Minnesota's move to raise $2.1 billion in new taxes, largely from the wealthy, to fund government programs puts it among a handful of states controlled by Democrats that are adopting more liberal fiscal policies at a time when many Republican-dominated statehouses are pushing to cut taxes.
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Headlines
Rich States, Poor States, 6th Edition
This 6th edition of Rich States, Poor States contains invaluable insight into each of the 50 "laboratories of democracy." With solid empirical research and the latest data on state economies, the evidence is clear on which state tax and fiscal policies directly lead to more opportunities, more jobs, and more prosperity for all Americans.
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Headlines
Ex-Penn State president tops highest paid list
Presidents of public universities are taking home bigger paychecks, and a growing number are raking in more than $1 million.
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Headlines : Minnesota
Minnesota budget deal: Tax hikes on high earners, tobacco
New revenue would boost school spending and fund a property tax relief plan. GOP responded with scorn.
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Headlines
What if the Internet Sales Tax Doesn't Make it Through Congress?
Some states are so anxious for the anticipated revenues they've already committed the money to various projects.
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Budget timeframe: Biennial
Fiscal Year begins: July 1
The current state budget can be found here.
Find the legislative session calendar here.
Find the current legislative leaders here.
Gov. Mark Dayton
130 State Capitol
75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard
St. Paul, MN 55155
Phone: (651) 296-3391
Fax: (651) 296-2089
http://www.governor.state.mn.us/
Jim Schowalter, Commissioner
Minnesota Management and Budget
658 Cedar Street
400 Centennial Building
St. Paul, MN 55155
Phone (651) 296-5900
Fax (651) 296-8685
www.mmb.state.mn.us
Want a more robust, long-term look at your state's fiscal health, beyond the budget? There are two parts: Click here for the FY2011 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) compiled by the state government, and click here for information on the state's pension liabilities.
Minnesota is required to pass a "balanced budget." Section 16A.11, Subdivision 2 of the State law requires the governor to present the biennial budget summary, setting forth the "balanced relation between the total proposed expenditures and the total anticipated income". Section 16A.156 provides the governor and relevant commissioner(s) must reduce expenditures if probable receipts for the general fund will be less than anticipated. Minnesota law forbids the carrying over of a deficit from one year to the next. Such requirements did not prevent the State from reporting budget deficits (negative net transactions) for two of the three years inspected.
The State maintains 28 individual funds, two of which are reported as major: the General Fund and Federal Fund. The only funds budgeted are the General Fund and non-major Special Revenue Funds. This is also evident from the State's annual reports that there are significant differences between actual and budgeted figures. [from the Institute for Truth in Accounting]
Find the state's bond ratings here.
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Pensions :
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HEADLINES
GAO finds growing state, local fiscal gap with Medicaid to blame
Closing the gap to achieve fiscal balance over 50 years will require "action to be taken today and maintained for each year equivalent to a 14.2 percent reduction in the state and local government sector's current expenditures."
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HEADLINES
State Pension Litigation Update, May 2013
In attempts to reign in the costs of pensions, state lawmakers legislate pension reform. Challengers to those reforms often bring suit, alleging violations of state law, contracts, and the Constitution.
- View All Minnesota articles
Revenue :
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HEADLINES: Minnesota, Colorado, California, Maryland, Ohio, Nebraska, Louisiana, Massachusetts
States' Rift on Taxes Widens
Minnesota's move to raise $2.1 billion in new taxes, largely from the wealthy, to fund government programs puts it among a handful of states controlled by Democrats that are adopting more liberal fiscal policies at a time when many Republican-dominated statehouses are pushing to cut taxes.
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HEADLINES: Minnesota
Minnesota budget deal: Tax hikes on high earners, tobacco
New revenue would boost school spending and fund a property tax relief plan. GOP responded with scorn.
- View All Minnesota articles
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Solutions:
How Reality-Based Budgeting Can Permanently Resolve State Budget Gaps
State Budget Solutions recommends that state legislators take action in 2013 to resolve the serious state financial crises by changing their focus from inputs to outcomes by redesigning budgets from the ground up based on priorities and performance.
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Solutions:
How to Prevent Future Pension Crises
The time for state and local governments to offer defined contribution retirement plans that protect both taxpayer dollars and public employee retirement security is now.
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Solutions:
State Lawmaker’s Guide to Evaluating Medicaid Expansion Projections
Supporters of Obamacare claim that expanding Medicaid will entail little to no cost to state governments, since the federal government will fund the vast majority of the additional costs. Indeed, some analyses project states achieving savings from adopting the expansion. However, state lawmakers should be wary of accepting such analyses at face value.
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Solutions:
Medicaid Is Broken—Let the States Fix It
Block-granting Medicaid is the best way to deliver better, cost-effective care to the most vulnerable Americans.
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Solutions:
The Case for Reform: Prisons
Prisons are supremely important, but they are also a supremely expensive government program, and thus prison systems must be held to the highest standards of accountability.
- View All Solutions
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State Pension Litigation Update, May 2013
In attempts to reign in the costs of pensions, state lawmakers legislate pension reform. Challengers to those reforms often bring suit, alleging violations of state law, contracts, and the Constitution.
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GAO finds growing state, local fiscal gap with Medicaid to blame
Closing the gap to achieve fiscal balance over 50 years will require "action to be taken today and maintained for each year equivalent to a 14.2 percent reduction in the state and local government sector's current expenditures."
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In Congress, a Bill Seeks to Tie Municipal Borrowing Power to Public Pension Disclosure
Representatives from California and two other states introduced a bill in Congress on Thursday that would strip states and cities of their right to issue tax-exempt bonds unless they first disclosed the true cost of their pension plans and whether they could pay it.
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States move along different roads to tackle underfunding dilemma
More states are enacting measures to help improve the solvency of their public pension funds as funding ratios remain low.
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GASB changes to boost pressure for pension reform, Fitch report says
Impending changes in Governmental Accounting Standards Board standards in 2014 and 2015 should increase public pressure on decision-makers to reform state and local government pension plans, according to a report from Fitch Ratings.
- View All Pensions
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BLOG: Higher Education, Spending
Who is the highest paid state employee in your state?
Time to add a new diagram to the state budget and policy playbook--your state's highest paid employee is probably a football or basketball coach.
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BLOG: Medicaid
Medicaid expansion won't yield quality health care
The bombshell Oregon Medicaid study released this week should give all states pause as they consider plans to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. States must now ask what the point of Medicaid is in the first place.
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BLOG: Spending, Revenue, Pensions, Federal Government Impact, Federal Government Impact
Minnesota governor proposes largest spending increase ever for Gopher State
Gov Mark Dayton's budget increases state spending by 8.5% over the current budget, the largest budget increase ever proposed by a Minnesota governor.
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BLOG: Budget Gimmicks, Budget Processes and Systems, Measures to Balance Budgets, Spending, State Debt
Let's Put Privatizing Municipal Services Back on the Table
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BLOG: Unions
Airing Out the Smoke-filled Rooms: Bringing Transparency to Public Union Collective Bargaining
To help prevent union strong-arming that fleeces taxpayers, we should know precisely what public union officials are demanding and what government employers are offering in any collective negotiation about employment terms and conditions.
- View All Commentary
