Trends in
Minnesota
Government
Spending
Are we really spending more, and if so, on what?
For the most current information on
the state budget and education proposals,
visit the Parents United News Archive Special Features section.
2007 Statement
The concerns about the Minnesota State Budget are broader than the impacts on K-12 education. Early Childhood and Health & Human Services are being severely impacted as well. People are raising concerns about the quality of life we Minnesotan's want and expect, and our willingness to pay for the services needed to make that quality of life happen.
2009 Statement
What is there to say, other than state leaders have known about the structural imbalance in the state budget ...and they haven't fixed it.
Citizens League Property Tax Studies - Check the most current Residential Homestead Property Tax Survey to find your local community's Effective Tax Rate—the combined total of local city, county and school district taxes.
Growth & Justice Research Links - Resources on Economic Growth + Economic Justice, Prosperity and Public Investment Research and Minnesota economic indicators.
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February 2008 - Preliminary Report - State budget criteria developed to assess Minnesota’s revenue and spending systems while identifying key issues that have and will cause budget instability and prepare recommendations. Final written report due January 15, 2009, State Budget Trends Study Commission.
October 2007 - An Overview of State Government Spending - Dramatically understates the decline in school revenues since the state takeover in 2003 (page 7). Had the Department of Finance used the IPD inflation index as recommended by the Minnesota Council of Economic Advisors, the FY 2003 amount in constant 2006 dollars would have been $8,987, revealing a decline of $668 or 7.4% from FY 2003 to FY 2006, Minnesota Department of Finance (K-12 Education only).
April 2007 - Making the case for changing the course: A look at how recent budget policies have dimmed Minnesota's prospects, Minnesota Senate Majority Research.
September 2006 - The Changing Picture of Minnesota Finance - How Local Government and School District finances are being undermined by bad state fiscal policy, Candidate for State Auditor Rebecca Otto (Office of the State Auditor).
August-September 2005 - What’s your community’s effective tax rate? - Citizens League 2005 Property Tax Survey provides a new measure of accuracy when comparing home values across communities. (Tables)
August 2004 - Let’s get Minnesota’s tax system off the rollercoaster - University of Minnesota Department of Applied Economics Associate Professor Thomas Stinson and graduate student Jeremy Prahm write about the need to stabilize Minnesota tax revenues (pdf, page 4), Minnesota Journal, Citizens League.
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"John Gunyou and Jay Kiedrowski have served as superb financial leaders for both Republican and Democratic governors. They have guided our state to success, and now are attempting to get us to pay attention to how we invest in our quality of life."
—Gov. Arne Carlson
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Straight Talk About Government Finance (Power Point) - Two former Commissioners of Finance, John Gunyou and Jay Kiedrowski, raise growing concerns about the financial mismanagement of our state.
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