Rep. Marquart Comments on Proposed Direct Payments and Budget Surplus

St. Paul, MN — With last week’s announcement that the State of Minnesota’s Budget Surplus has increased another $1.5 billion, Governor Tim Walz is tripling down on his proposal to send direct payments back to Minnesotans. Prior to the release of the February budget forecast, Governor Walz was proposing direct payments of $175 for a single and $350 a couple, but now has increased his proposal to $500 for a single or $1000 for a couple. District 4B Representative Paul Marquart says the House will be considering a similar bill, which he believes will help taxpayers get through this period of inflation.

On the other side of the aisle, Republicans want to use the surplus to eliminate the social security tax. However, Marquart notes that most Minnesotans on social security currently don’t pay any taxes to that state on social security as long as their income is less than around $80,000 a year. As the chair of the Tax Committee, he would like to see a reduction in property taxes for senior citizens.

Representative Marquart joins the KRJB Kaleidoscope Program each Friday at 9am.