Minnesota Counties: The State’s Underfunded Partner

The State of Minnesota and the 87 Minnesota counties partner to perform many public functions. Counties operate as the administrative arm of the state in providing many state-mandated services, while the state provides aid to counties to help pay for these services;...

Federal Estate Tax Conformity: A Big Win for Über-Rich

By ensuring that extremely high-income households pay state and local taxes at a rate approaching that of other Minnesota households, the estate tax does more, dollar for dollar, than any other tax to reduce tax regressivity in Minnesota. Conservatives want to...

Estate Tax Break Increases Regressivity

Conservatives in Minnesota continue to push for a dramatic reduction in Minnesota’s estate tax, which would almost exclusively benefit the state’s wealthiest residents (who already enjoy below average effective tax rates). Implementing the estate tax reductions...

The Merits of Expanding Edina’s New Tobacco Law

The Edina City Council recently passed an ordinance that raises the minimum age of tobacco sales up to 21 years old, making it the first city in Minnesota to do so. This proposal has already gained traction with other Minnesota cities, and could eventually be...

Property Tax Break Favors Large, Metro Businesses

The state revenue loss resulting from changes to the state business property tax in the tax conference committee report are likely to increase rapidly over time—for reasons described in a recent North Star article—and ultimately surpass the revenue loss associated...