Much of Fourth Tier Tax Increase Shifted to Feds

by | Jan 10, 2017

Conservatives contend that Minnesota’s fourth tier income tax has led to a significant reduction in work, as well as flight to other states, among the high-income households affected by the tax. However, if we do the math, the impact of the fourth tier income tax...

Comparing Health Care Premium Relief Proposals

by | Jan 6, 2017

This week, both Governor Dayton and the Republican-led legislature released proposals to help Minnesotans deal with spikes in health care premiums. Governor Dayton originally proposed his plan in October 2016, while the GOP plan is new. Both proposals spend about $300...

Real City Spending Down Since 2006

by | Jan 5, 2017

Total Minnesota city revenues—adjusted for inflation—have declined by six percent from 2006 to 2015, based on data from the recently released Minnesota City Finances report from the Office of the State Auditor (OSA), as summarized in the preceding North Star article....

Real City Revenues Drop Over the Decade

by | Jan 4, 2017

Despite significant population growth, the inflation-adjusted revenue of all Minnesota cities has declined by six percent from 2006 to 2015. However, the decline is not spread evenly across all revenue categories. Property taxes climbed significantly over the decade,...

Smart Fiscal Management Contributed to Surplus

by | Dec 22, 2016

The November 2016 state economic forecast projected an official general fund surplus of $678 million in the current biennium and a $1.4 billion surplus for the upcoming FY 2018-19 biennium, as noted in a recent North Star article. The presence of surpluses is a...

Minnesota Tuition Hikes Surpass U.S. Average Since 2000

by | Dec 20, 2016

State support for higher education in Minnesota has declined over the course of the 21st century and—as a result—tuition has skyrocketed, as demonstrated in part one and part two of this series. While these trends are not unique to Minnesota, the decline of state...

Declining State Aid Translates into Soaring Tuition

by | Dec 15, 2016

State support for higher education declined by over 40 percent from fiscal year (FY) 2000 to 2015, after adjusting for inflation and changes in enrollment, as reported in the first part of this series. However, the burden of state funding cuts did not fall so much on...

State Support for Higher Education Drops Dramatically Since 2000

by | Dec 14, 2016

A conservative interest group recently claimed that higher education has become a tremendous suck on state resources. A close examination of public higher education revenue in Minnesota tells a different story. Since the turn of the century, state support for higher...

Don’t Base Large Tax Cuts on an Uncertain Forecast

by | Dec 7, 2016

The ink was hardly dry on the November 2016 forecast when conservatives started calling for big tax cuts. After all, there is a $1.4 billion surplus projected for the upcoming FY 2018-19 biennium—what better time to go on a tax cutting spree! However, a closer...

Modest Changes Mean a “Boring” November Forecast

by | Dec 5, 2016

The newly released November forecast shows only modest changes to state revenues and expenditures relative to what was projected at the end of the 2016 legislative session. As a result, the forecasted surpluses—now projected to be $678 million at the end of the...