Committee update - Minnesota State Legislature

epresents 400,000 members, opposes a
unicameral Legislature. He said not one
of his members has called him to
complain about the organization’s
position.
Judy Duffy, president of the MN
League of Woman Voters, said it’s the
league’s opinion that a unicameral
Legislature does not provide sufficient
checks and balances in the legislative
process. She said the slower, more
deliberative process of a bicameral
Legislature is more likely to produce
good legislation. She said by taking
away one of the two members who
represent citizens, citizens will have less
access to the Legislature.
Bill Blazer, vice-president of the
Minnesota Chamber of Commerce,
testified that two bodies produce better
laws. He said a broader discussion of
reform is needed.
Sen. LeRoy Stumpf (DFL-Thief River
Falls) said the problem isn’t
unicameralism or bicameralism but
bureaucracy in government. He said
agencies’ rules cause the most problems.
Sen. Dan Stevens (R-Mora) offered an
amendment to establish a 67 member
unicameral Legislature rather than a
135 member body. The amendment was
defeated. A motion that the bill be
recommended to pass failed on a four to
eleven roll call vote. A motion was
made to forward the bill to the Rules
and Administration Committee without
recommendation. The motion was
approved on an eleven to four roll call
vote.
Constitutional amendment gains
The Environment and Natural Resources
Committee, chaired by Sen. Bob
Lessard (DFL-Int’l. Falls), met Weds.,
Mar. 1, and unanimously approved a bill
calling for a constitutional amendment
that provides $112 million for Department
of Natural Resources (DNR) fish
and wildlife programs, state local parks
and trails, and other programs.
S.F. 3173, authored by Lesssard,
provides a long-term fix for DNR
budget shortfalls in recent years. If
approved by the Legislature and the
governor, the amendment would be
placed on the ballot in next fall’s
general election.
Under the bill, 3/16 of 1 percent of
the 6.5 percent sales taxes, or approximately
$112 million a year, is appropri-
ated from the general fund to game and
fish resource enhancement, improvement
and protection, natural resource
conservation, state and Metro Area
parks and trails, and local trail grants.
The Minnesota Zoological Garden,
Como Park Zoo and Conservatory and
the Duluth Zoo also receive money,
under an amendment, offered by Sen.
Ellen Anderson (DFL-St. Paul), and
adopted by the panel.
The bill specifies that 45 percent of
the money go into an account in the
DNR fish and game fund, to be reviewed
by a nine-member panel. Twenty-five
percent would go to state parks and
trails, 25 percent to Metro Area parks
and trails and 5 percent to local trails,
the Minnesota Zoo, Como Zoo and the
Duluth Zoo.
The measure received support from a
wide range of groups, such as the
Minnesota Deer Hunters Association,
which “strongly supports” the long-term
fix. Former Minnesota Vikings coach,
Bud Grant, also spoke in support of the
bill. “Not many states can boast the
natural resources we have in Minnesota,”
Grant said. “We’re the envy of
many states, but we’ve let things slide.”
The measure, he said, will preserve the
state’s natural resources for generations
to come. “If we can do it, we’ll leave a
legacy for our kids forever,” said
Lessard. The bill follows a “short-term”
fix, offered by Lessard, and passed by the
committee a week earlier, which sunsets
in two years when S.F. 3173 goes into
effect if passed by voters next fall.
The bill was approved unanimously by
the committee in a role call vote and rereferred
to the Governmental Operation
and Veterans Committee.
Economic forecasts presented
Members of the State Government
Finance Committee received two
presentations on forecasts of the
Minnesota and national economies at
the Weds., Mar. 1, meeting. The
presentations were made by Arthur
Rolnick of the Minneapolis Federal
Reserve Bank, Pam Wheelock, commissioner
of the Dept. of Finance, and Tom
Stinson, state economist.
Rolnick said that the economy is
resilient, worker productivity has been
increasing at a faster pace since 1995,
and the Minnesota economy mirrors the
national economy. He said that despite
several problems such as the stock
market crash of 1987, Savings and Loan
insolvency, and federal deficits, the
economy has grown at an annual rate of
4 percent or more since 1982. “The
economy is anything but fragile,” he
said. From 1973 to 1995, worker
productivity grew at an annual rate of
about 1.5 percent, Rolnick said, but it
turned up to 2.6 percent in 1995. He
added that underestimating the growth
in productivity is the reason for state
budget surpluses around the country
and at the federal level.
The final point made by Rolnick is
that, because of its diversification, the
Minnesota economy mirrors the national
economy. Sen. Richard Cohen
(DFL-St. Paul), chair of the committee,
said that the state has had surplus after
surplus and asked if the forecasting
service they use, DRI, is doing anything
wrong or if the state should be doing
anything different with the information.
Rolnick said that DRI uses older
forecasting models that didn’t see the
growth in worker productivity sooner,
and that’s the reason for the surpluses.
Cohen also asked if there were any
problems the state could anticipate.
Rolnick replied that he couldn’t think
of anything that could derail the
economy. “Just make sure the rainy day
fund is fully funded and enjoy the good
times,” Rolnick said.
Later, Wheelock said that the February
forecast predicts a net increase of
$229 million in the budget surplus since
the November forecast. Stinson,
following up on a statement made by
Rolnick, said that the state council of
economic advisors chose not to recognize
the increase in worker productivity
as a long term trend. He said that if
they had done that and been wrong, it
would have resulted in a state budget
deficit of $1 billion or more.
Cohen asked if there was any reason
the Legislature should not rely on the
Dept. of Finance economic forecasts.
Stinson said that one strength of the
state budget is its management by the
Legislature. He said that in 1991 the
Massachusetts Legislature met until
October deciding the state budget
because they used two different sets of
forecast numbers. Stinson said that a lot
of time was wasted deciding which
numbers to use rather than deciding
budget issues.
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