State has huge $17.6B projected budget surplus, governor renews calls for “Walz checks”

(St. Paul, MN) — While Republicans say, give back as much of the state’s massive 17.6-billion-dollar budget surplus as possible, Governor Tim Walz is renewing his call for tax rebate checks — a thousand dollars for singles, two thousand for families — plus eliminating state tax on Social Security benefits for “a large number of Minnesotans.” The governor said today (Tues), “I think the only thing I can pledge you for certain around taxes is, I will not be proposing a tax cut for the wealthiest Minnesotans. That’s not gonna happen.” However Walz would not take tax *increases* — such as he’d proposed earlier for top-bracket income or the gasoline tax — off the table. “I think it’s disingenuous to go into this by closing doors,” he said. Incoming House Republican Leader Lisa Demuth (DAY-muth) from Cold Spring says with Minnesota’s record budget surplus, “I believe, my caucus believes that tax hikes should be completely off the table.”