Capitol View for March 19

Good morning. Shoutout to all our vernal equinox fans out there.

Will Gov. Tim Walz’s supplemental budget be the floor or the ceiling? We’re about to find out. The DFL governor introduced a $226 million rework of the much, much larger state budget Monday, opting to leave most of a projected surplus untouched to avoid causing more pressure on Minnesota’s finances in the future. MPR’s Dana Ferguson writes that the biggest revision is $45 million more to pay for a child tax credit that goes to families based on income. There is also money to deal with high nitrate levels in southern Minnesota drinking water and a budget deficiency at the agency that runs state prisons. Ambulance services aid aimed at reducing strains in some rural communities would be boosted as would child welfare and protection initiatives. The full slate of spending items is here . The plan lets more than $3.5 billion remain unspent. That’s a tantalizing pot of money for lawmakers with pending proposals, but every dollar spent now pushes the state closer to a shortfall swirling on the horizon.

Walz also sounded off on two big stories with epicenters in Minneapolis: The rideshare ordinance that has led to threats of uprooting by Lyft and Uber and the prosecution of a State Patrol trooper by Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty. On the rideshare ordinance, Walz said he hopes state lawmakers can help broker a compromise before the possible pullout by companies but declared himself “not super hopeful” a deal can be struck. “I guess this is a game of chicken,” he said. On the prosecution of trooper Ryan Londregan, Walz said he’s not at the point of pulling that case from the Hennepin County attorney. He said it could pose a conflict of interest if given to the attorney general, which represents the State Patrol in other matters. He says it might properly be up to a jury to decide, but he’s confused by the way the case has been handled so far. “As a layman on this, why would you not listen to a use of force expert? Why would that not be central?” Walz didn’t offer a timeline for deciding. There is more on that case from Axios (which reported on the governor’s reservations first) and the Star Tribune.

Some Minnesota lawmakers have their eyes on an expensive pair of shoes. A bill that would have the state buy the famed ruby slippers — the ones that went missing after an eventually solved heist. They’d be turned over to the Minnesota Historical Society. It’s due for a hearing this afternoon. As drafted, the bill doesn’t say how much the state could or should spend on the acquisition, but says the Historical Society could lease or loan them to the Judy Garland Children’s Museum in Grand Rapids. Our Matt Sepic has been all over the criminal proceedings from the 2005 theft; the slippers were recovered in 2018. Matt got this from the Historical Society: “The Minnesota Historical Society is open to exploring how the ruby slippers line up with our collecting criteria, as well as learning more about a potential sale process and cost. Our curators follow a rigorous set of criteria when evaluating a potential acquisition, including its alignment with the MNHS mission, how it complements our current collection, and the condition of the item.”

Voters are voting today in one small part of Minnesota. Residents of Minnesota House District 27B are voting in a special election. Two candidates are vying to replace former Republican Rep. Kurt Daudt for a region spanning sections of Anoka, Isanti, Mille Lacs and Sherburne counties. Cattle farmer and businessman Bryan Lawrence is the Republican nominee. Brad Brown, the chair of an area township council, is the DFL candidate. Daudt stepped down last month due to a new job. He served as House speaker from 2015 to 2019, then as minority leader until 2022. The contest won't change party balance in the chamber. Republicans hope the November election will hand them control of the House for the first time in six years.

Another big retirement is coming in the Minnesota House. Eleven-term Republican Rep. Dean Urdahl of Grove City is hanging it up , citing a “hyper-partisan, activist-driven” political environment. Urdahl has been a leading player in the Legislature’s construction projects debates for years, formerly chairing the House Capital Investment Committee. Urdahl told the West Central Tribune that he agonized over the decision; he was also facing an endorsement challenge with two other Republicans having opened campaigns in the district. “I have been struggling with this decision about whether to retire for some time, but, at one point, decided to run again this November,” Urdahl told the newspaper. “I have since reconsidered and, frankly, have grown tired of the politics and obstacles to doing what is right. My decision has absolutely nothing to do with being opposed within the Republican Party; that didn’t concern me.” The updated list of House retirements can be found here.

Some lawmakers are hoping to repeal Minnesota’s tax on illegal drugs, which brings in zero dollars in revenue. MinnPost’s (ahem… MinnPot’s) Peter Callaghan reports under a decades-old Minnesota law, people who sell illegal drugs are required to visit the state Department of Revenue building in St. Paul and purchase stamps. Those stamps in turn, must be stuck onto the marijuana, cocaine or other drugs as proof of tax payment. It’s $3.50 per gram of marijuana, $200 per gram for controlled substances and so on. The last time any revenue was collected was in 2014 when a dealer thought it would provide immunity from prosecution (it didn’t). While it seems ridiculous, bill authors Rep. Jessica Hanson, DFL-Bursville, and Sen. Claire Oumou Verbeten, DFL-St.Paul, say the tax law has its roots in the national war on drugs. The purpose of the bill wasn’t to collect money, but to give county attorneys an additional charge in which to prosecute dealers — tax evasion.

The main post office in Minneapolis now bears the name of Martin Olav Sabo, a Democratic giant who rose to the upper ranks in the state House and later in Congress. MPR’s Cari Spencer was there yesterday as a plaque was unveiled at the building. The name change honors the late politician who died in 2016 after serving nearly three decades as a U.S. Representative in Minnesota's 5th Congressional District. As a congressman, he led the budget committee for a time and secured federal funding for major Twin Cities infrastructure projects, like the Hiawatha light rail line. Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Rep. Ilhan Omar led the passage of legislation pushing for the name change, which was signed into law at the end of 2022.