Good morning, and happy Thursday.
Minnesota Republicans are making elimination of the tax on Social Security income a top priority, but not everyone pays the tax. MPR’s Tim Pugmire reports: Not all Social Security earnings are taxed in Minnesota. The tax is determined by a retiree’s overall income. Some pay little or nothing. Most of the revenue comes from those with an annual income of $150,000 or more. There were 565,000 state tax returns that reported Social Security Income in 2017, according to the nonpartisan Minnesota House Research Department. More than half of those returns –55 percent– paid no tax on their benefits. And the tax cut is expensive. Sen. Carla Nelson, R- Rochester, who chairs the Senate Taxes committee recently told members of her committee that the cost would be $539 million in fiscal year 2023, and well over $1 billion during the following two-year budget cycle “It is a significant revenue to our state,” Nelson said. “But I submit to you that these benefits were purchased by the retirees and it’s a significant part of their retirement.”
The U.S. House passed a bill Wednesday night that would ban the importation of oil from Russia. The vote was 414-17. One of the no votes came from DFL U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota. “The president clearly already has the authority to take this step - evident in that President Biden announced just such a ban yesterday,” Omar said in a statement about her vote. “But putting the specifics into statute with no sunset and no conditions for lifting the ban creates a dangerous scenario, one in which we are taking today’s policy question and making it tomorrow’s political question.” Politico reports the Senate is not expected to consider the House-passed bill, with upper-chamber Democrats wary of tying Biden’s hands.
Back in Minnesota MPR’s Catharine Richert reportsbetween the first and second year of the pandemic, complaints against long-term care facilities increased, according to a state watchdog. In a Senate hearing, state ombudsman for long-term care Cheryl Hennen said her office has seen a steep rise in sexual abuse complaints within long-term care facilities between 2020 and 2021 — from nine complaints to 19. Other abuses — like financial exploitation and neglect — rose, too, but not by as much, while physical abuse complaints are down slightly. Hennen noted that her office suspended in-person visits to facilities during 2020 due to the pandemic. "But it is important to note that these statistics may underestimate the actual abuse statistics because we were not able to be in person,” she said.
Minnesota’s public safety department will release its own report on the state response to civil disturbances after George Floyd’s 2020 killing by police. On Tuesday an independent report broadly faulted the city of Minneapolis. It blamed city leaders for communication problems and the delay in calling out the National Guard. The separate review of state Department of Public Safety actions could be released in a few weeks. Commissioner John Harrington expects it to recommend stronger collaboration before emergencies. “We will have lessons learned especially around incorporating fire response,” Harrington said Wednesday. “That was one of those areas where we hadn’t been as quick to pull the trigger on. We have learned since then that is one of my first calls for service whenever we have a disruption to have fire online and at the table.” Gov. Tim Walz said the upheaval demonstrated the importance of emergency management planning and training exercises.
The Associated Press reportsa state Senate committee on Wednesday advanced a bill that would block the authority of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to adopt “clean car” standards after rules established by the agency without the Legislature's input angered Republicans last summer. The proposal, named the Consumer Choice of Fuel Act, would prohibit state agencies from creating rules that would restrict the sale of vehicles and other equipment based on their fuel source and require auto dealers to have a certain amount of those vehicles in their inventory. The legislation would effectively block “clean car” rules adopted by the Walz administration in July that take effect in 2024 for the 2025 model year, which encourage a switchover to electric vehicles in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and curb the worsening impact of climate change. The standards — which only apply to new vehicles for sale in Minnesota — do not apply to off-road or heavy-duty vehicles and equipment, farm equipment or semi-trucks. | 