Back to the Future: Declining School Aid in Minnesota

by | Sep 13, 2018

Despite increases in recent years, real per pupil state operating aid to Minnesota school districts has declined overall since fiscal year (FY) 2003. This decline in state aid translated into significant property tax hikes and—in many instances—reduced funding for...

Minnesota in the Middle on Middle-Income Taxes

by | Aug 8, 2018

Minnesota conservatives work hard to portray Minnesota as a high tax state. In reality, state and local effective tax rates for middle-income families in Minnesota are fairly typical of the rates in other states. In addition, average effective tax rates for...

Minnesota Earns High Marks for Fiscal Responsibility

by | Aug 2, 2018

Last week, Standard & Poor’s (S&P) upgraded Minnesota’s  general obligation (GO) bond rating to “AAA”—its highest ranking. Minnesota became one of only thirteen states to enjoy a AAA GO rating from at least two of the “big three” credit rating agencies...

Income Tax Hikes Have Not Stifled Job, Income Growth

by | Jul 30, 2018

Conservatives frequently argue that tax increases stifle job growth. In reality, data from 1950 to the present show no indication that Minnesota income tax increases have had any adverse impact on job creation or income growth. In fact, Minnesota’s rate of job and...

Minnesota Passes Wisconsin in Total Jobs

by | Jul 12, 2018

Total 2017 employment in Minnesota eclipsed that of Wisconsin for the first time in history,* despite having over 200,000 fewer people. Just ten years ago, Minnesota had 93,000 fewer jobs than Wisconsin. The Gopher State now has 6,200 more jobs, according to the...

Poor People Have the Highest Effective Tax Rates

by | Jul 6, 2018

An argument used to undermine programs that provide tax relief for low-income people—such as Minnesota’s Working Family Credit (WFC) and Child & Dependent Care Credit—is that they provide tax relief to households that are not paying taxes in the first place....