Minnesota Taxes Much Less Regressive

by | May 4, 2017

Minnesota’s state and local tax system remains regressive, with lower- and middle-income households generally paying a larger percentage of their income in state and local taxes than higher-income households, although the degree of tax regressivity is modest and...

City LGA Differences Among Various Plans

by | May 1, 2017

Governor Dayton’s city Local Government Aid (LGA) proposal increases the LGA appropriation in the upcoming two year budget, while the House freezes the appropriation and the Senate cuts it, as noted in the preceding North Star article. Knowledge of the appropriation...

City Aid Declines Under Most LGA Proposals

by | Apr 24, 2017

For the last four and a half decades, the city Local Government Aid (LGA) program has helped cities fund essential services and control property tax levels, but in real (i.e., inflation-adjusted) dollars per capita, city LGA is currently less than half of what it was...

One-Sided Reverse Referendum Undermines Local Governance

by | Apr 20, 2017

A movement is again afoot in Minnesota to allow anti-tax voters to create new hurdles to local levy increases. Under the moniker of “taxpayer empowerment,” this initiative would allow voters as few as ten percent of the number voting in the last general election to...

Basic School Revenue Hasn't Kept Up with Inflation

by | Apr 18, 2017

Most of the assistance that Minnesota school districts receive from the state comes in the form of basic general education formula revenue. This revenue establishes a base level of funding for all districts, from which—in theory—basic school operating expenses can be...

Are 529 Tax Breaks Working?

by | Apr 17, 2017

In order to incentivize families to save for their children’s college education, Minnesota and other states are exploring income tax credits and deductions for 529 plans. Named after section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code, these investment vehicles were designed to...