Making their case
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, January 29, 2002
As the legislative session gets underway today, Rep.
Tuesday, January 29, 2002
As the legislative session gets underway today, Rep. Dan Dorman, R-Albert Lea and Sen. Grace Schwab, R-Albert Lea, will propose bills that intend to boost a stagnated local economy -&160;but they will have to confront a record $2 billion state budget shortfall to get their proposals passed.
&uot;It is going to be a tremendous session. I think it’s going to be partisan at times and contentious in this year of election. It will take a lot of work, a lot of back and forth between different parties and different regions in the state,&uot; Dorman said.
He is introducing a tax amnesty bill that will give tax scofflaws a 120-day period to pay their overdue taxes in exchange for some penalty waivers. Dorman anticipates the bill would increase state revenue by $25 to $50 million.
Dorman will also present a one-half percent city sales tax imposition in Albert Lea. The City Council passed the proposal, brought by a local citizen group, last year, and a local referendum will be taken if the state would endorse it. The sales tax would pay for still-to-be-determined downtown improvements and lake restoration, designed to bring more visitors to Albert Lea and create recreational opportunities.
As for the Farmland issue, Dorman has prepared a sales-tax exemption for constructing a new plant. He will also assist the city’s application for registering the projected new site near I-35 as a tax-increment financing (TIF) district, which would allow the city to channel tax money from the site to pay for costs associated with Farmland.
Schwab has two Farmland remedy proposals.
One is to extend unemployment benefits for the displaced employees. She will propose a maximum 26-week extension for those who are enrolled in reemployment assistance training. According to the Farmland union, about 200 workers are still unemployed and living in the area.
The other is to subsidize school districts where the enrollment has declined because of the Farmland fire.
The Albert Lea School District has lost 52 pupils so far, according to Schwab. The bill aims to make up the reduction in the state aid that is subject to the enrollment number. The four-year program asks the state cover 100 percent of the loss in fiscal year 2002, 75 percent in 2003, 50 percent in 2004 and 25 percent in 2005.
For education, Schwab will propose to replace the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments test in high schools with other tests that she says would assess the preparedness for basic college-level academic standards more accurately.
Schwab will also propose a $20,000 one-time appropriation for the County Crime Victims Crisis Center, and a $2.5 million bond issue for the Blazing Star Trail bike trail that would connect Albert Lea and Austin.
Like Dorman, Schwab anticipates the session will be difficult one. &uot;It is going to be extremely busy, intensive and complex. It is normally a bonding session, but we have huge issues to deal with this time. I am ready for work,&uot; she said.