The ever-upward march of government spending ought to be halted. We couldn’t afford in the fat years, and we can’t afford in the lean ones....
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In the space of a few weeks, Minnesota's fiscal question has been flipped on its head: from 'How do we deal with a forecast surplus?' to 'How do we deal with a potential deficit?'...
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The government is putting large swathes of the economy into 'sleep mode' to fight the Coronavirus. Here is what we need to do to make sure there is an economy left to turn on when we get the all clear. ...
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Spend it, or leave it with the hard working taxpayers who earned it? That is the $1.5 billion question facing policymakers in St. Paul this session. ...
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This morning, our economist, John Phelan, spoke before the House Ways and Means Committee on HF150, which would require that the inflation rate be included in the state economic forecast....
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Is the forecast surplus a nice little bonus for Minnesota's politicians? Or should it be left with the hardworking taxpayers who earned it?...
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Today Minnesota Management and Budget released their biannual Budget and Economic Forecast. The state’s economist projected a $1.332 billion state surplus, and that’s after sending $284 million to the budget reserves....
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As state and local agencies scramble to get their borrowing requests in, ask yourself two questions; 1) Is this really 'investment'? and 2) Should the government be doing this?...
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In May, we wrote that the already weak case for hiking taxes on Minnesotans had just got weaker. New numbers from Minnesota Management and Budget show that, since then, its gotten weaker still. ...
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State tax revenues and spending show a steady relationship over time with state GDP. The lesson is clear: if you want to boost state government tax revenues, support policies which will boost state economic growth....
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