Lawmakers in St. Paul put an end to a ten year trend of declining Local Government Aid after investing $80 million into the program. The City of St. Cloud will see an additional $1.7 million next year.
St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis is in St. Paul today attending the first of several meetings for a new Tax Reform Advisory Group appointed by Governor Mark Dayton.
St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis will joined Governor Mark Dayton at a news conference this (Thursday) morning. Kleis says he's been asked to chair a statewide committee to discuss tax reform and local government aid to cities.
City leaders from across the state are bracing for what's expected to be cuts to Local Government Aid. In fact, the Minnesota House of Representatives passed the bill yesterday (Thursday) 68-63 that eliminate about $1-billion from the state budget deficit. The Senate is expected to take up their version of the fill next week.
The Republican-led House is taking its first big vote of the year with a bill biting $1 billion off a state budget problem six times as large. The bill seeks savings by cutting allowances to local governments and colleges, freezing state worker pay and forcing agencies to hand over money they had yet to spend.