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I want to share my concern about the increasing dependence our state has on passing levies for continued educational excellence. I am a staff member and grandparent of children in the Brainerd school district, having moved to Minnesota many years ago from the south. In addition to the quality of services we have here in Minnesota, one of the main things that has kept me here has been the wonderful school district. 

I was always proud of the equity and support our state government gave to education, but that confidence has diminished over the past few years. We hope to pass our levy and have worked extremely hard to give the public the facts, but in my opinion this is a very poor way to fund education. It sets some districts up as winners and others as losers, and hurts families where levies don't pass. In the future, please consider equitable and sufficient state funding so levies are no longer necessary. I would gladly pay more state taxes to maintain the quality of our infrastructure, including roads, schools, social services etc. 

As I (only half jokingly) told my husband, if this trend in lower state taxation and accompanying eroding services continues, we might as well move to Mississippi because at least the weather is better.

Sincerely,
Bonnie Kriha