Small Business Tax Relief? Not So Much

by | Mar 4, 2016

In recent years conservatives have talked about phasing-out and ultimately eliminating the state business property tax. This is the first of a series of articles that will examine various aspects of this plan. This article will examine the distribution of tax relief...
Executive Summary: Minnesota's Budget Surplus

Executive Summary: Minnesota's Budget Surplus

by | Mar 3, 2016

The conservative effort to use the entire budget surplus to reduce state taxes—often referred to as the “give it back” campaign—is based on the premise that state revenues and expenditures have increased dramatically and thus all legitimate state expenditure needs...
Minnesota's Budget Surplus: Balancing Tax Cuts and Investments

Minnesota's Budget Surplus: Balancing Tax Cuts and Investments

by | Mar 3, 2016

I. Introduction Last March, a group of legislators gathered at the State Capitol with a simple message: “Give it back!” The “it” refers to the state budget surplus, then projected to be nearly two billion dollars for the upcoming fiscal year (FY) 2016-17 biennium....

A Closer Look at the February Forecast

by | Feb 26, 2016

On the surface, today’s release of the February economic forecast was no big deal. Projections of state general fund revenue went down (mainly due to national and global economic trends that state policymakers have no control over), but so too did projected spending....

Conservative Criticisms of the 2013 Tax Act Fall Flat

by | Feb 24, 2016

A recent North Star article touted the success of the 2013 tax act in reducing tax regressivity, providing targeted tax relief, reducing the state and local taxes paid by most middle-income households, funding important public investments, and helping to put the state...