Minnesota’s Economic News – W/E 10/30/20

A round-up of the last week’s economic news stories in Minnesota.

How have federal taxes changed for different income groups historically?

According to a report released in early October by the Congressional Budget Office, taxes have fallen the most for the households in the lowest quintile between 1979 and 2017. Additionally, high-income groups now pay a significantly higher share of federal income taxes than they did in 1979.

Lawmakers Stiff Second Chicago to Twin Cities Amtrak Train in Bonding Bill

It says a lot when a pet project backed by well-connected lobbyists fails to make the cut in the $1.9 billion bonding bill passed by the Minnesota Legislature filled with lots of other goodies for special interests. Nevertheless that’s what happened to the passenger rail group promoting yet another Amtrak train for taxpayers to subsidize along with the perpetually late arriving Empire Builder line at Union Depot in St. Paul. Supporters claim 124,000 riders will take the proposed train annually, roughly the number of passengers that historically board the existing train.  But their timing couldn’t have been worse  with the...

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Europe’s Covid-19 experiences show that mitigation measures can only mitigate, they cannot stop the spread of the virus

As the Italian and German examples show, Gov. Walz was probably correct in March when he said that the spread of Covid-19 couldn't be stopped.

Line 3 Construction Complete in Canada, North Dakota and Wisconsin, Still Delayed in Minnesota

A recent report from the Associated Press shows the Line 3 oil pipeline replacement project is completed in Canada, North Dakota, and Wisconsin. Construction on the project has not even started in Minnesota due to politically-motivated delays to the project. In other words, this environmental improvement project is already done in areas where energy sanity still prevails. The interesting takeaway here is how long Minnesota has delayed this project compared to how long it will actually take to replace the pipeline once construction begins. A report from MPR states the replacement project will take 6 to 9 months to complete....

Green New Preview: Biden Wants to End Gas Car Sales But Hasn’t Said When

Presidential hopeful Joe Biden wants to take a page from California’s energy playbook and ban the sale of gas-powered cars, according to a report in E&E News. Biden’s climate plan, which was crafted by John Kerry and Freshman Congresswoman Alexandria-Ocasio Cortez, states the administration wants to develop “rigorous new fuel economy standards aimed at ensuring 100 percent of new sales for light- and medium-duty vehicles will be electrified.” But the plan does not say when this would go into effect. According to E&E, Biden could try to outlaw the internal combustion engine as soon as 2035. “2035 already has been...

BEA estimates show that GDP grew significantly in the third quarter

According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, GDP in the third quarter grew at an annual rate of 33.1%, as businesses continued efforts to reopen. What this new data shows, more than anything else, is the fact that it is the shutdowns that have had the biggest threat to the economy, not the virus itself.