2013-2014 Legislative Priorities and Scorecards June 2014
Table of Contents Introduction 2 Mission and Vision Statement Board of s Government Affairs Committee Legislative Priorities 7 Minnesota Senate Scorecard Overview 9 Senator Jim Carlson 11 Senator Greg Clausen 12 Senator Jim Metzen 13 Senator Dave Thompson 14 House of Representative Scorecard Overview 15 Representative Joe Atkins 17 Representative Pat Garofalo 18 Representative Laurie Halverson 19 Representative Rick Hansen 20 Representative Sandra Masin 21 Representative Anna Wills 22 1
Dakota County Regional Chamber of Commerce is committed to building a stronger regional business community. We steadfastly serve the cities of Eagan, Farmington, Lilydale, Mendota, Mendota Heights, Rosemount, Sunfish Lake, and West St. Paul, along with Castle Rock, Empire, Eureka, and Hampton Townships. Explore the many ways we're leading the way to make the Dakota County area the best possible place to live, work, and grow your business. Vision Statement To be recognized as the premier regional Chamber of Commerce addressing the business community needs within Dakota County. Mission Statement Dakota County Regional Chamber of Commerce unites the business community to improve members' success by: Advocating public policy Providing networking and professional development opportunities Encouraging economic development 2013-14 Board of s DCR Chair of the Board Phil Stalboerger MTM/MNet, Inc. West St. Paul DCR Chair-Elect Beth Krehbiel Fairview Ridges Hospital At-Large DCR Past Chair Michele Engdahl Thomson Reuters Eagan 2
Finance Chair Allen Glynn KLC Financial, Inc. At-Large President Vicki Stute Dakota County Regional Chamber Paul Eggen State Farm Insurance Rosemount Lisa Franxman Anchor Bank Farmington Farmington Cindy Haas Gateway Bank Mendota Heights Jeff Indovina Midwest Coca Cola Bottling Company Eagan 3
Jeffrey Larson JBL Companies Eagan Matt Lemke Flint HIlls Resources Rosemount Mark Lofthus Dakota Electric Association Farmington Debi McConnell Medi-CAR Auto Repair Rosemount Lin Nelson Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Eagan Ryan O'Gara SKB Environmental Rosemount 4
Roz Peterson Cerron Commercial Properties At-Large Jeff Rothmeyer TruStone Financial Federal Credit Union At-Large Troy Solis Sol-Information Systems, LLC. Farmington Scott Swenson Home Federal Eagan Randy Thatcher Ecolab Eagan Tim Wynes Inver Hills Community College At-Large 5
Ex-Officio Brent Cory, Eagan Convention & Visitor's Bureau Eagan 2013-14 Government Affairs Committee The Government Affairs Committee serves the interests of the regional business community by: Facilitating member communication with local, state, and federal officials through regular conference calls and breakfast programs Becoming involved in addressing local business issues at a policy level Developing position statements on key local, regional, state, and federal issues Increasing member engagement through grassroots and leadership support Chair Lin Nelson Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota Committee Members Donald Chapdelaine, SKB Environmental, Inc. Patrick Connolly, Connolly Kuhl Group Donald L. Hoeft, LeVander, Gillen & Miller Matthew Lemke, Koch Companies Mark Lofthus, Dakota Electric Association Katie Misukanis, Rasmussen College Lin Nelson, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Roz Peterson, Cerron Commercial Properties Barbara Platten, MTM/MNet Don Sinnwell, Twin City Homes Inc. Phil Stalboerger, MTM/Mnet Vicki Stute, DCR Chamber Holli VanOverbeke, Weber Johnson Public Affairs The Government Affairs Committee typically meets on the second Friday of each month as needed and in preparation of the legislative session. Please contact Vicki Stute at 651.288.9201 for further information. 6
2014 Legislative Priorities TAX POLICY B2B Tax Repeal. Your Chamber advocates for immediate repeal of the three business to business taxes imposed in the 2013 session which undermines job growth and economic opportunities in Minnesota. The Chamber opposes any sales tax base broadening to business services and business-to-business transactions. Given the size of the projected surplus, eliminating the B2B taxes should be just a first step in improving Minnesota s competitiveness. This provides opportunities to fix other uncompetitive taxes such as the new 9.85% 4th tier on individual income taxes, our high corporate tax rate, the estate and gift taxes and needed federal conformity updates. In the 2013 session, taxes were increased by $2.3 billion. This included a new 4th tier income tax of 9.85%, $424 million corporate tax increase, cigarette tax increase, a new gift tax, and three new business to business sales taxes. The three new B2B taxes totaling over $300 million are: 1) business storage and warehousing; 2) labor costs for repair and maintenance of business equipment; and 3) telecommunications equipment purchases by telecommunication providers. EDUCATION & WORKFORCE POLICY Teacher Evaluations and Staffing Flexibility. School districts should be given the authority to use teacher evaluations when determining whom to layoff and whom to retain for future school years. Teachers deemed highly effective should be the last to be laid off, regardless of seniority. In similar fashion, teachers deemed ineffective should be the first to be laid off, regardless of seniority. Further, school leaders should be given maximum flexibility to make staffing decisions based on school site needs. Reform Q-Comp. The Chamber supports statewide expansion of the Q Comp performance-based teacher compensation and reforms to Q Comp to sync it with the statewide teacher evaluation system. Merit pay should be linked to teacher evaluation. Dual Credit. The Chamber supports strengthening and expanding established jump-start and dual-credit postsecondary programs, including postsecondary enrollment options (PSEO) for all Minnesota institutions, early college, concurrent enrollment, advanced placement, international baccalaureate, career and technical education, and college level examination placement (CLEP). Additionally, high schools and post-secondary programs should be encouraged to work together to develop communitybased early college programs designed to meet local and regional workforce needs. 7
ENVIRONMENTAL PERMITTING POLICY Permitting. Minnesota businesses statewide have expressed frustration and concern about the time required to process environmental review documents and environmental permits. To maximize competitiveness in a global economy, companies seeking industrial permits whether for existing, expanding or new facilities must be assured of the clarity, timeliness, predictability and accountability of the environmental review and permitting process. WASTE MANAGEMENT POLICY The Dakota County Regional Chamber of Commerce supports integrated waste management that protects the environment and relies on private-sector competition to provide cost-effective waste management options. Additionally, your Chamber is opposed to any legislation which proposes a mandate to collect fees for bottles, cans, and other beverage containers as well as the establishment of a statewide recycling program. HEALTH INSURANCE Employers are uncertain about the federal Affordable Care Act consequences on their businesses and increasingly burdened with the rising cost of health care insurance for their employees. TRANSPORTATION Your Chamber supports investment in transportation infrastructure to keep Minnesota prosperous and competitive in the efficient movement of people and goods. An effective transportation delivery system must include a modern, multimodal system, linked with efficiency measures and sustainable funding mechanisms. 8
Minnesota Senate #1: HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Ingebrigtsen amendment (5/5/2014) The amendment offered by Sen. Bill Ingebrigtsen, R-Alexandria, would have shortened the time to process permits from 90 days to 75 days. The final result: Failed #2: SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Conference committee (5/5/2014) The conference committee report contained a mandate on all Twin Cities businesses to collect three of four items including, but not limited to, paper, glass, plastic and metal, effective January 2016. Dakota County Regional and Minnesota Chambers of Commerce opposed this bill. The final result: Passed #3: HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - Conference committee report (5/8/2014) The motion made by Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont, would have rejected the conference committee report and sent the report back to the committee. The final result: Failed #4: HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) The bill repealed all three sales taxes on business-to-business transactions that were enacted in 2013. The bill adopted federal conformity for 2014 income-tax returns, increased the threshold for estate taxes to $2 million, and repealed the gift tax. It delayed enactment of the up-front exemption for sales tax on capital equipment. The final result: Passed 9
#5: HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - Pratt amendment (4/22/2014) The amendment, authored by Sen. Eric Pratt, R-Prior Lake, would have provided school districts with the ability to keep the best teachers in the classroom, regardless of seniority. The final result: Failed #6: HF 2091 Minimum wage (4/9/2014) The bill raised the minimum wage, in phases, reaching $9.50 in 2016, and adds an annual inflationary increase beginning in 2018. Dakota County Regional and Minnesota Chambers of Commerce opposed this bill. The final result: Passed #7: HF 3172 MNsure rates - Rosen amendment (4/8/2014) The amendment offered by Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont, would require the commissioner of Commerce to publish insurance rates - both inside and outside the health insurance exchange - by October 1. It also would require legislative approval for an increase in the premium tax and legislative approval for MNsure's operating budget. It would require new third-party reporting on MNsure's operations and finances. The final result: Failed 10
Senator Jim Carlson Democrat-MN-051 Result Name of the Legislation Vote Score Failed HF 3172 MNsure rates - Rosen amendment (4/8/2014) N Passed HF 2091 Minimum wage (4/9/2014) Y Failed HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - Pratt amendment (4/22/2014) N Passed HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) Y Failed HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - Conference committee report (5/8/2014) Passed SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Conference committee (5/5/2014) Y Failed HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Ingebrigtsen amendment (5/5/2014) N N 11
Senator Greg Clausen Democrat-MN-057 Result Name of the Legislation Vote Score Failed HF 3172 MNsure rates - Rosen amendment (4/8/2014) N Passed HF 2091 Minimum wage (4/9/2014) Y Failed HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - Pratt amendment (4/22/2014) N Passed HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) Y Failed HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - Conference committee report (5/8/2014) Passed SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Conference committee (5/5/2014) Y Failed HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Ingebrigtsen amendment (5/5/2014) N N 12
Senator James Metzen Democrat-MN-052 Result Name of the Legislation Vote Score Failed HF 3172 MNsure rates - Rosen amendment (4/8/2014) N Passed HF 2091 Minimum wage (4/9/2014) Y Failed HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - Pratt amendment (4/22/2014) N Passed HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) Y Failed HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - Conference committee report (5/8/2014) Passed SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Conference committee (5/5/2014) Y Failed HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Ingebrigtsen amendment (5/5/2014) N N 13
Senator Dave Thompson Republican-MN-058 Result Name of the Legislation Vote Score Failed HF 3172 MNsure rates - Rosen amendment (4/8/2014) Y Passed HF 2091 Minimum wage (4/9/2014) N Failed HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - Pratt amendment (4/22/2014) Y Passed HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) Y Failed HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - Conference committee report (5/8/2014) Passed SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Conference committee (5/5/2014) N Failed HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Ingebrigtsen amendment (5/5/2014) Y Y 14
House of Representatives #1: HF 2536 Women s Economic Security Act Conference committee report (5/7/2014) The motion made by Rep. Sarah Anderson, R-Plymouth, would have rejected the conference committee report and sent the report back to the committee. The final result: Failed #2: HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Fabian amendment (5/5/2014) The amendment offered by Rep. Dan Fabian, R-Roseau, would have shortened the time to process permits from 90 days to 75 days. The final result: Failed #3: HF 2091 Minimum Wage (4/10/2014) The bill raised the minimum wage, in phases, reaching $9.50 in 2016, and adds an annual inflationary increase beginning in 2018. Dakota County Regional and Minnesota Chambers of Commerce opposed this bill. The final result: Passed #4: SF 2390 Primary election - Sanders amendment (4/30/2014) The amendment authored by Rep. Tim Sanders, R-Blaine, would have moved the primary election from August to June. The final result: Failed #5: HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) The bill repealed all three sales taxes on business-to-business transactions that were enacted in 2013. The bill adopted federal conformity for 2014 income-tax returns, increased the threshold for estate taxes to $2 million, and repealed the gift tax. It delayed enactment of the up-front exemption for sales tax on capital equipment. The final result: Passed 15
#6: SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Hornstein amendment (4/24/2014) The amendment, authored by Rep. Frank Hornstein, DFL-Minneapolis, mandated recycling on businesses in the Twin Cities metropolitan area, starting in January 2016. Dakota County Regional and Minnesota Chambers of Commerce opposed this bill. The final result: Passed #7: HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - S. Anderson amendment (4/9/2014) The amendment, authored by Rep. Sarah Anderson, R-Plymouth, sought a reasonable balance for providing protections for working women without greatly increasing litigation costs and exposure for employers. The final result: Failed #8: HF 3167 Business property taxes - S. Anderson amendment (4/4/2014) The amendment to the omnibus supplemental tax bill, authored by Rep. Sarah Anderson, R-Plymouth, would have mitigated the $77 million business property tax shift in this bill by lowering the statewide levy. The final result: Failed #9: HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - S. Erickson amendment (4/4/2014) The amendment offered by Rep. Sondra Erickson, R-Princeton, provided school districts with the staffing flexibility necessary to keep the best teachers in the classrooms, regardless of their seniority. The final result: Failed #10: HF 3172 Recycling mandate, statewide - Torkelson amendment (4/3/2014) The omnibus supplemental appropriations bill contained a mandate on all businesses statewide to collect three of four items including, but not limited to, paper, glass, plastic and metal. The amendment offered by Rep. Paul Torkelson, R-Hanska, removed that language from the bill. The final result: Passed 16
Representative Joe Atkins Democrat-MN-52B Result Name of the Legislation Vote Score Passed HF 3172 Recycling mandate, statewide - Torkelson amendment (4/3/2014) N Failed HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - S. Erickson amendment (4/4/2014) N Failed HF 3167 Business property taxes - S. Anderson amendment (4/4/2014) N Failed HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - S. Anderson amendment (4/9/2014) N Passed SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Hornstein amendment (4/24/2014) Y Passed HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) Y Failed SF 2390 Primary election - Sanders amendment (4/30/2014) N Passed HF 2091 Minimum Wage (4/10/2014) Y Failed HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Fabian amendment (5/5/2014) N Failed HF 2536 Women s Economic Security Act Conference committee report (5/7/2014) N 17
Representative Pat Garofalo Republican-MN-58B Result Name of the Legislation Vote Score Passed HF 3172 Recycling mandate, statewide - Torkelson amendment (4/3/2014) Y Failed HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - S. Erickson amendment (4/4/2014) Y Failed HF 3167 Business property taxes - S. Anderson amendment (4/4/2014) Y Failed HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - S. Anderson amendment (4/9/2014) Y Passed SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Hornstein amendment (4/24/2014) N Passed HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) Y Failed SF 2390 Primary election - Sanders amendment (4/30/2014) NV - Passed HF 2091 Minimum Wage (4/10/2014) N Failed HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Fabian amendment (5/5/2014) Y Failed HF 2536 Women s Economic Security Act Conference committee report (5/7/2014) Y 18
Representative Laurie Halverson Democrat-MN-51B Result Name of the Legislation Vote Score Passed HF 3172 Recycling mandate, statewide - Torkelson amendment (4/3/2014) Y Failed HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - S. Erickson amendment (4/4/2014) N Failed HF 3167 Business property taxes - S. Anderson amendment (4/4/2014) Y Failed HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - S. Anderson amendment (4/9/2014) N Passed SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Hornstein amendment (4/24/2014) Y Passed HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) Y Failed SF 2390 Primary election - Sanders amendment (4/30/2014) N Passed HF 2091 Minimum Wage (4/10/2014) Y Failed HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Fabian amendment (5/5/2014) N Failed HF 2536 Women s Economic Security Act Conference committee report (5/7/2014) N 19
Representative Rick Hansen Democrat-MN-52A Result Name of the Legislation Vote Score Passed HF 3172 Recycling mandate, statewide - Torkelson amendment (4/3/2014) N Failed HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - S. Erickson amendment (4/4/2014) N Failed HF 3167 Business property taxes - S. Anderson amendment (4/4/2014) N Failed HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - S. Anderson amendment (4/9/2014) N Passed SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Hornstein amendment (4/24/2014) Y Passed HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) Y Failed SF 2390 Primary election - Sanders amendment (4/30/2014) N Passed HF 2091 Minimum Wage (4/10/2014) Y Failed HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Fabian amendment (5/5/2014) N Failed HF 2536 Women s Economic Security Act Conference committee report (5/7/2014) N 20
Representative Sandra Masin Democrat-MN-51A Result Name of the Legislation Vote Score Passed HF 3172 Recycling mandate, statewide - Torkelson amendment (4/3/2014) N Failed HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - S. Erickson amendment (4/4/2014) N Failed HF 3167 Business property taxes - S. Anderson amendment (4/4/2014) N Failed HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - S. Anderson amendment (4/9/2014) N Passed SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Hornstein amendment (4/24/2014) Y Passed HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) Y Failed SF 2390 Primary election - Sanders amendment (4/30/2014) N Passed HF 2091 Minimum Wage (4/10/2014) Y Failed HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Fabian amendment (5/5/2014) N Failed HF 2536 Women s Economic Security Act Conference committee report (5/7/2014) N 21
Representative Anna Wills Republican-MN-57B Result Name of the Legislation Vote Score Passed HF 3172 Recycling mandate, statewide - Torkelson amendment (4/3/2014) Y Failed HF 2397 Omnibus K-12 education policy bill - S. Erickson amendment (4/4/2014) Y Failed HF 3167 Business property taxes - S. Anderson amendment (4/4/2014) Y Failed HF 2536 Women's Economic Security Act - S. Anderson amendment (4/9/2014) Y Passed SF 663 Recycling mandate, metro - Hornstein amendment (4/24/2014) N Passed HF 1777 Omnibus tax bill (3/21/2014) Y Failed SF 2390 Primary election - Sanders amendment (4/30/2014) Y Passed HF 2091 Minimum Wage (4/10/2014) N Failed HF 2543 Environmental permitting - Fabian amendment (5/5/2014) Y Failed HF 2536 Women s Economic Security Act Conference committee report (5/7/2014) Y 22