Session Update: Senate Republicans Outline State Budget Plan

The painstaking work of crafting Minnesota’s next two year budget is underway, and the Republican-led Senate released their budget targets Tuesday, March 16, for the next biennium.

The $51.9 billion dollar proposal would devote 40 percent of the budget to E-12 Education, including funding to address educational disparities, increase teachers of color and improve students’ mental health. About 31 percent of the budget would be directed toward healthcare expenditures including continuing investments in the Health Care Access Fund. The plan would also provide $591 million dollars in tax relief through several measures already passed by the Senate, such as relieving the tax burden on Minnesota employers who accepted federal Paycheck Protection Program dollars and unemployed Minnesotans who received an additional federal unemployment stipend.

The Senate budget plan proposes increases in several budget areas: a $216 million dollar increase for transportation projects, and an additional $100 million dollars for Jobs and Economic development to aid recovery from COVID-related unemployment. The Senate is also proposing $40 million dollars for broadband expansion and seeks a 5 percent reduction in state agency budgets.