Hello from the State Capitol, where the 2011 legislative session is under way!

The festivities began on Jan. 4, where all 134 members of the Minnesota House took their oath of office. After electing our House speaker for the next two years, establishing temporary House rules and appointing some nonpartisan House staffers to their official capacities, Day 1 was completed.

Now that session has begun, our House committees are also getting into full swing. Each biennium, the leaders in the House and the Senate set the number and scope of the standing committees and establish committee chairs according to which party is in the majority. This biennium, Republicans hold a 72 to 62 seat edge over the Democrats.

In the House, there are 24 standing committees and divisions.

Committees range in size from 12 to 34 members. Each member serves on three to five committees so he or she is able to focus on a few areas of policy development as the session progresses.

Each member is also allowed to state his or her committee preference, which may or may not make a difference as the speaker ultimately designates the members where he sees fit. I was pleased with my committee assignments, and was honored to have been named vice chairman of the Minnesota House Government Operations and Elections Committee. In addition, I will also serve on the Jobs and Economic Development Finance, State Government Finance, and Transportation Policy and Finance committees.

There’s no doubt that each of these committees will be determining how to be more efficient with reduced funding over the next two years.

The most recent state financial forecast shows a $6.2 billion budget deficit for the 2012-2013 biennium, due largely to state government continuing to spend far more than it collects. While Minnesota’s revenues are predicted to increase by $1.5 billion in the next two years, spending for that same time period is anticipated to go up by $8.3 billion.

Factors driving this spending growth include: Replacing $2.3 billion in federal stimulus funds and $660 million in one-time funding reductions made last year, along with school funding shifts and continued growth in state health and human services programs.

With only $275 million left in our state’s budget reserves, there are basically two choices to eliminate the shortfall: Increase taxes or reduce spending on state government programs. We still have far too many people who are unemployed or are working reduced hours, as evidenced by our continued lagging income tax collections, which are $471 million below the previous estimate. Raising any taxes on these folks would be a complete disaster.

Further, the electorate recently spoke, and spoke loudly, that they are tired of wasteful government spending and want some fiscal responsibility. They want their government to tighten its belt and live within its means, and I believe this is the right approach toward eliminating this massive shortfall.

As session progresses, I encourage you to contact me at any time with your questions, concerns, or comments. You can call me at 651-296-8216, drop me an e-mail at rep.rich.murray@house.mn, or send a letter to 439

State Office Building, 100 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155. I am always eager to hear how you feel, so please keep in touch in the weeks ahead.

I also invite you to subscribe to my e-mail update, where periodically I can give you some thoughts and information on issues that are being debated at the State Capitol. To sign up, visit www.house.mn/27A and click on the “Email Updates” section.

Once again, it is an honor to represent your interests in St. Paul, and I look forward to your input as the session progresses.

Have a question or concern? Constituents in District 27A including communities in Freeborn and Mower counties can write to me at 439 State Office Building, 100 Rev Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155. Or call me at 651-296-8216 or e-mail me at rep.rich.murray@house.mn.

Rich Murray, R-Albert Lea, is the state representative for House District 27A.