As we approach the midway point of this year?Äôs legislative session, things begin to transition at the Capitol. Committees are now moving into completing their budget proposals and hearing testimony on some of these larger budget bills. We will soon begin longer floor sessions as we work to pass legislation that will benefit all Minnesotans ?Äì particularly those in Greater Minnesota. Here is a quick snapshot of what went on in St. Paul over last week:
SF603
A bill to limit the highest paid state employees from receiving severance pay was heard in the State Government Finance and Policy Committee last week. Under current state law, a ?Äúhighly compensated employee?Äù is defined as an employee whose annual compensation is greater than 60 percent of the governor?Äôs salary, but is not subject to a collective bargaining agreement.
Currently, severance pay to those highly paid individuals is equal to six months of pay. This bill would limit the severance package to the lesser of six months?Äô pay or 35 percent of unused sick leave hours times the employee?Äôs regular rate of pay. I believe this legislation is necessary to ensure we are not offering exorbitant rewards to those individuals who leave state service.
Dedicated auto parts sales tax
Senate File 990, legislation I authored to dedicate tax revenue from the purchase of motor vehicle parts, tires, accessories, and fluids to the highway user tax distribution fund, was presented to the Senate Taxes Committee last week. The legislation would create a dedicated revenue stream for transportation funding by requiring an annual transfer of the taxes paid for vehicle parts to the highway user tax distribution fund. This fund is one of six state funds which go toward various Department of Transportation infrastructure projects statewide.
SF869
I presented Senate File 869 to the Senate Taxes Committee last Tuesday. The legislation would provide a credit of up to $7,000 to Minnesotans with a disability, or over the age of 65 for necessary accommodations to their home. The accommodations must be certified by a physician or primary care provider; the credit would come in the form of an income tax credit. The bill was laid over for possible inclusion in the omnibus tax bill.
Reinsurance
Last Wednesday, I joined many of my Senate colleagues in voting to support a proposal intended to lower premiums for the five percent of Minnesotans who purchase their health insurance on the individual market. The legislation passed the Senate floor by a vote of 37-29.
The bill implements a reinsurance program in Minnesota. Under a reinsurance model, high claims would essentially be removed from the individual market by splitting the costs of those claims between the insurer and the state. Actuaries from the Department of Commerce predict rates will decrease between 18 and 23 percent compared to where they would be without a reinsurance model. The differences between the House and the Senate bills will now be worked out in a conference committee.
Minnesota State Senate, 2113 Minnesota Senate Bldg, 95 University Ave West, St. Paul MN 55155
Tel: (651) 296-2084
Email: sen.michelle.fischbach@senate.mn