Corporate Tax Cuts Increase Income Inequality

by | May 16, 2018

North Star would like to thank Professor Louis Johnston of the College of Saint Benedict/Saint John’s University for critiquing earlier drafts of this article.   Conservatives typically argue that the benefit of corporate tax cuts will trickle down to workers in...

Emergency School Aid Increase in Context

by | May 14, 2018

Governor Dayton recently proposed a one-time “emergency aid” increase of $138 million to Minnesota public schools in fiscal year (FY) 2019, in the form of a two percent increase in basic general education formula revenue and selected categorical aid programs. This aid...

Petroleum Refining in Minnesota

by | May 10, 2018

In the aftermath of a fire at the Husky Energy Superior Refinery in Superior, WI, petroleum refining has been in the news recently, with most of the focus on the safety of Minnesota refineries. There are two petroleum refineries in Minnesota and a handful of major...

So Many Myths, So Little Time

by | May 8, 2018

The first installment in this series scratched the surface of the abundant supply of Minnesota economic and fiscal policy myths. This article scratches a little deeper, knocking off three additional myths. Some of these myths are not unique to Minnesota, but all are...

Debunking Minnesota Economic and Fiscal Policy Myths

by | May 3, 2018

Minnesota is a land of 10,000 lakes and almost as many misconceptions about the size of government, growth in public revenue and expenditures, and performance of the state’s economy. Some of these mistaken beliefs are the result of an innocent misreading of the data,...