Gov.

Monday, January 14, 2002

Gov. Jesse Ventura stressed the urgency of the state’s budget dilemma during his recent state of the state address. He said every option should be on the table, from tax increases to spending reductions, with spending cuts the No. 1 option. House Speaker Steve Sviggum has already proposed a state hiring freeze.

Even though legislative finance committees may begin to hold hearings prior to the start of the 2002 session, it’s unreasonable to expect that the House and Senate could agree to millions in program reductions in just a week’s time. For every state-funded program or service, there is a constituency which likely will be very anxious to testify as to why their program or service should not be reduced. It will be a very lively first week of session.

On the morning of the governor’s address, former Gov. Al Quie appeared on Minnesota Public Radio to comment on the budget deficit he faced as governor some 20 years ago. He said legislative leaders often need a &uot;crisis to bite the bullet.&uot; But what was interesting is that he said citizens and lawmakers are more aware of the budgetary problem today than they were during prior downturns. We’ll see if the governor and legislature are better prepared this time around. &uot;There will always be downturns in the economy,&uot; Quie said. &uot;You can’t always protect yourself from pain.&uot;

Budget opinions

A few weeks ago, the House Republican Caucus created a new Internet web site for citizens to offer their own solutions to address the state’s $1.9 billion budget deficit (www.mnbalancedbudget.com). The project has been a success thus far. The web site has received more than 1,000 &uot;hits&uot; in its first weeks of operations and more than 200 citizens have submitted their own advice on how to address the state’s budget deficit. I hope to be able to share some of these citizens’ budget-fixing ideas in a few week’s time but please don’t hesitate to let me know directly how you would balance the state budget by contacting my e-mail address below.

Bread and butter

Many people have been surprised that since the beginning of the year, bakeries and groceries are charging sales tax on that loaf of freshly prepared bread you buy. What happened? Isn’t food exempt from the sales tax? Did legislators vote to balance the budget a loaf at a time?

Last session, the Legislature and the governor adopted the Uniform Sales and Use Tax Administration Act. Minnesota now joins other states in agreeing to consistent definitions in setting state sales tax policy. In light of growing interstate commerce (especially via the Internet), the goal is to make it easier for retailers to collect taxes uniformly on varying products and services. As a result, many items, including food that is prepared by a seller (like fresh bakery bread), is now subject to the sales tax.

The state revenue department has an updated list on the Internet of what commodities and services are subject to the sales tax at www.taxes.state.mn.us/salestax/factshts/salestax.html.

What do you think? I welcome your input and ideas. Call me at home at 377-9441 or at the Legislature, toll-free, at 1-877-377-9441. My legislative office address is 579 State Office Building, 100 Constitution Ave., St. Paul, MN 55155. My e-mail address is:

rep.dan.dorman@house.leg.state.mn.us.