By Robin Brown, Capitol Comments

For the second year in a row, the State Legislature ended on time late Sunday evening. I was pleased with the bipartisan agreement we reached in the final days of the session, and believe we made a good effort to protect the basic values that have made Minnesota a great place to live. We found a way to make strategic investments in our schools, offer increased funding for nursing homes, provide property tax relief to those who need it the most and expand health care coverage for more Minnesotans. I believe this session will be considered one of the most productive in years.

As a member of three education committees, I worked hard to help develop the legislation that will provide an additional $51 per pupil in 2009. Schools in dire condition are also offered the flexibility to transfer another $51 per pupil from their capital budget to their general fund to address critical needs. While I know this one-time funding boost is not a long-term solution, it is still significant money that can help pay for things such as teachers, extracurricular activities or just to help cover rising food and transportation costs.

I also serve as vice-chairwoman of the Property Tax Relief Division, where we dedicated our efforts to passing legislation that will provide property tax relief to those who need it the most &8212; seniors living on a fixed income, families, farmers and property owners who have suffered a financial setback due to an illness or loss of income. Our final bill includes a 3.9 percent levy limit over the next three years, $60 million in additional local government aid and $25 million in new county aid. This legislation will help keep property taxes within a reasonable range for most families and actually offer a credit to many by linking taxes to income.

Our health care bill reduces the number of uninsured Minnesotans by 31 percent over this biennium, provides lower health care costs for every Minnesotan and allocates $47 million for public health grant programs to reduce smoking and obesity rates.

In addition, nursing homes are slated to receive a 2 percent cost of living adjustment in 2009, on top of the 2 percent they received in 2008. This represents a $15 million investment over two years, and will make a real difference in the lives of our friends and family members who live there, as well as those who care for them.

When you consider we were facing a $965 million deficit, these accomplishments are fairly remarkable. Our budget agreement was reached by reprioritizing state spending, using a responsible amount from the budget reserve and unallocated funds, and strategic cuts.

Earlier in the session, we passed a transportation bill that spends $6.6 billion over the next 10 years on fixing roads and bridges, and a bonding bill that funds work projects &8212; including our Edgewater Park project in Albert Lea. We also passed a constitutional amendment dedicating funding for the outdoors. In the fall, voters will be asked whether they want to raise the state&8217;s sales tax by three-eighths of 1 percent and dedicate that new revenue to clean water, game and fish habitat, parks and trails, and cultural heritage.

In addition to all of this, we created jobs, an estimated 10,000 as a result of the bonding bill and another 33,000 every year for the next five years with the transportation bill. Job development is key to economic recovery, and the legislation we passed this year will put thousands of Minnesotans to work.

Of course, our work isn&8217;t finished. But I&8217;m very pleased with the progress we have made over the past two years and look forward to continuing our efforts to protect the traditional values that have made our state great.

As always, I am honored to serve. Please continue to be a part of the process by contacting me with your concerns and suggestions. I can be reached at (651) 296-8216, or by e-mail at rep.robin.brown@house.mn.

Robin Brown, DFL-Austin, is the state representative for District 27. She lives in Moscow Township in Freeborn County.