News Release State Senator Roger J. Reinert District 07 149 State Office Bldg. 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. St. Paul, MN 55155-1206 Telephone (651) 296-4188 sen.roger.reinert@senate.mn Date: February 15, 2011

Reinert Voices Support for Governor’s Budget Proposal

Today, Senator Roger Reinert voiced his support for the Governor’s FY2012-13 budget proposal. “The Governor has put forward a fair, responsible and balanced budget,” said Senator Reinert. “It addresses the Minnesota budget deficit in a complete and thoughtful way; investing in our future and creating a tax structure that is more progressive for Minnesotans. The Governor has also been honest and transparent in his budget. Excepting the K-12 shift, there are no accounting tricks or gimmicks.”

Governor Dayton’s approach focuses on protecting education and public safety. While it does include new revenue, 95% of Minnesotans would pay no additional taxes. In addition, under the Governor’s plan, there are no further reductions to local government aid. Cuts to LGA regularly translate into increased property taxes at the local level. “I appreciate that this plan stops putting the state budget burden on the backs of cities, counties and school districts,” said Senator Reinert. “We were elected to solve this problem, not push it off onto lower levels of government.”

The Governor’s plan also protects veteran’s programs, something that Senator Reinert defended on the Senate floor last week. The budget holds the departments of Military Affairs and Veterans Affairs harmless, while adding funding to National Guard tuition reimbursement and Higher Education Veterans Programs.

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