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Unionizing Daycare Workers a Bad Idea for Minnesota Families
Why does Governor Mark Dayton want in-home private child care providers to unionize? Why does he want parents to pay more for their child care?
I’ve heard from several provders who say child care unization is the worst thing they’ve ever heard for children, parents, and providers – not to mention that less than 40% will actually get to vote. The Governor’s tainted executive order only allows the 4000 providers who receive state child care subsidies to vote and all the rest of the total 11,000 licensed providers in the state will be forced to abide by the outcome of the vote with no voice.
So much for Democracy!!
These providers are very capable and know not only how to run a business, but how to properly care for children. They don’t need the Governor or some union telling them how to run their business.
Yet, that is what the Governor exactly wants to do!
Next to their mortgage, daycare is the families/parents second most costly monthly expense. Many parents are in fact working just to pay their mortgage and daycare and certainly can’t afford to start also having to pay increased costs to cover the provider’s union dues.
The Governor stated in his executive order that providers will be given a choice to belong and pay dues is the union vote is successful. Hello! Minnesota isn’t a Right to Work state so his remarks are at least misleading and potentially out and out lies. I believe the Governor may have provided the last straw and it is time to let the voters to decide if Minnesota should be a Right to Work state.
This isn’t a matter of fixing something that isnt’t broke, this is old fashion political cronism. The Governor says this is something that started before is administation but it isn’t hard to assume this new order is nothing more than payback to the SEIU and AFSCME.
The vote on the unionization of in-home and private daycare providers will start on December 6. If you disagree with the terrible government overeach let the Governor know and send in a letter to the editor.
FY2012-13 Budget: Limiting Spending and Achieving Long-Term Reform
Spending FY2012-13:
Forecast: $39 billion
Gov Dayton: $37 billion
Final Agreement: $34.3 billion
Judiciary and Public Safety
Spending:
$1.8 billion General Fund appropriation, $20 million less than the Governor proposed
Resolves a 2009 DFL accounting failure and correctly accounts for a $27 million hole in the Dept of Corrections fund and funds at a level to maintain core services within the courts
Reforms:
Prioritizes the use of state funds on state cases over federal cases
Specifies that funding increases are used to alleviate caseloads and pay for specified operations costs
Prohibits additional funding for increased employee salaries
Requires a co-payment for prison inmate initiated healthcare
Saves counties money through lower reimbursement rates for medical services to local prisoners
Transportation
Spending:
$4.7 billion total appropriation (Dedicated and General Fund) for state and local roads, public safety and transit
$125.7 million General Fund appropriation, $55 million less than the Governor proposed
Cuts spending by $42 million from current levels
Provides over $2.5 billion for jobs related to the construction and maintenance of Minnesota’s trunk highway system
Reforms:
Creates a Trunk Highway Economic Development Account to promote economic development, highway improvement and relieve growing traffic congestion
Improves transit financing and public transparency
Requires development planners to disclose both capital and long-term operating expenses
Taxes
Spending:
$4.1 BILLION in DFL and Gov. Dayton TAX HIKES BLOCKED
$600 million (17 percent) reduction in projected FY2012-13 state aids and credits $750 million (20 percent) reduction in future spending, achieved through permanent long-term spending cuts
Reforms:
Provides $30 million in net tax relief, including estate tax relief for farms and small businesses, sales tax exemption for townships, sales tax exemption for public safety water, and sales tax exemption for resale ticket purchases and freezes city and county aid at 2010 levels, providing budget and funding stability to local officials
Modifies county maintenance of effort (MOE) requirements to allow for greater flexibility and cost savings in delivering local services
Increases homeowner’s property tax refund program and provides more direct property tax relief to middle and lower income homeowners
Includes federal tax conformity to simplify taxpayer filing and tax administration
Replaces the current broken market value homestead credit program and converts it to a comparable exclusion on homeowners’ property tax
Suspends the Political Contribution Program is suspended for two years
Includes federal taxes in the Tax Incidence Study, allowing for a more accurate portrait of the burden on MN taxpayers
K-12 Education
Spending:
$13.6 billion General Fund appropriation, $600 million less than the Governor proposed and $2 billion less than projected FY2012-13 spending
NOTE: An extension and expansion of the education aid “shift” is included in this measure pursuant to an overarching budget agreement between legislative leaders and the governor
o As in the past, existing law provides that the shift will be bought back when the economy recovers and state revenues increase enough to build up a budget surplus
o After taking the effect of the shift into account, the bill appropriates $13.6 billion over FY 2012-13 ($6.3 billion in FY 2012 and $7.3 billion in FY 2013)
$50 increase in per pupil funding allowance
Special education funding increased according to current law growth factors
Reforms:
Seeks mandate relief with the repeal of the contract settlement deadline (January 15) and penalty ($25 per pupil)
Repeals the safe schools levy maintenance of effort restriction (no change to total amount of funding)
Extends by two-years the relief from requiring local districts to spend 2 percent of their basic revenue on staff development
Ends the inefficient and uneven Integration Revenue after FY 2013 to be replaced with a yet undetermined program and spending distribution
Repeals the state’s authority to borrow from school districts with reserves during a fiscal year (the payment shift is different because that splits payments over two different fiscal years)
Increases the Literacy Incentive Aid and investment in the MN Reading Corps.
Requires school districts to “earn” Literacy Incentive Aid funds through student reading test scores in the early elementary grades
Creates Early Graduation Scholarships, allowing academically capable and hard-working students to complete their high school education early and to take the funds to the college of their choice
Requires regular evaluations of principals and teachers: student test scores must be connected with the rating of the teacher
Higher Education
Spending:
$2.57 billion General Fund appropriation, $180 million less than the Governor proposed and
Cuts spending by $246 million from current levels
$21 million increase for the State Grant program to improve and expand choice in higher education
Increases funding for the Work Study program to allow more students to work their way through college
Reforms:
Enacts tuition limitation at MnSCU’s two year institutions, forcing systematic reform and efficiency
Requires the U of MN and MnSCU schools to meet performance benchmarks to receive a portion of their funding
Utilizes need-based State Grant program and Work Study programs to drive expanded choice in higher education, employment opportunities for students, and minimizes student loan debt
Health and Human Services
Spending:
$11.3 billion General Fund appropriation, $700 million less than the Governor proposed and $1 billion less than projected spending
Future spending (tails) reduced from a projected 11.5 percent increase to a significantly lower 4.8 percent increase
No increased surcharges are included in the final agreement
There are no rate reductions to nursing homes in this bill
Reforms:
Bends the curve on health care spending to slow the massive growth in the fastest growing part of the state budget
Creates a defined contribution to privatize public health care for some MinnesotaCare recipients
Controls the number of people allowed on the waiver programs through limits on Elderly and Developmental Disability Waivers
Repeals the provider tax
Provides tax relief from the MinnesotaCare provider tax with a blink-on or off depending on the financial structure of the Health Care Access Fund.
Prevents welfare fraud by strengthening welfare eligibility requirements and placing greater photo ID requirements and restrictions on the use of EBT cards for alcohol or tobacco purchases
Includes County Service Delivery Authority, allowing counties to consolidate human service departments into delivery authorities
Repeals entirely the nursing facility and hospital rebasing, drastically reducing falsely inflated forecasted spending for health and human services
Limits the Medicaid fee-for-service spending for the next 4 years
Increases funding to small, rural nursing homes and rural pharmacies
Modifies MFIP requirements and makes changes for recipients
Accepts the Governor’s Medical Assistance early enrollment program, but also ensures that reforms and cost containment efforts would be done to serve the adults without children below 75 percent FPG
Accepts the Governor’s proposal to ask the federal government for a series of waivers but seeks accompanying reforms:
o Promoting personal responsibility and encouraging and rewarding healthy outcomes, encouraging utilization of high quality, cost effective care through Medicaid and MinnesotaCare enrollee cost sharing
o Redesign home and community based services for people with disability in order to ensure a more sustainable system
o Changes to the Elderly Waiver to improve access to housing, redesign of assessment tools, transition and relocation efforts, refinancing of Alternative Care and Essential Community Supports, and providing Medigap coverage for those not eligible for MA
o Health Care Delivery Demonstration Projects to test alternative payment service and delivery models for Minnesota Health Care Plan fee-for-services recipients and managed care enrollees and support an improved primary care coordination model for recipients
Environment/Energy/Commerce
Spending:
$237 million General Fund appropriation, $39 million less than the Governor proposed
Cuts spending by $75 million from current levels
No fee increases
No tax increases
Reforms:
Provides budget flexibility to maintain outdoors and deal with critical issues such as aquatic invasive species and chronic wasting disease
Requires review of state agency water management to streamline and consolidate among all agencies that have water programs
Reforms state tree nursery program to devise a long-term business plan for sustainability without competing with the private sector
Jobs and Economic Growth
Spending:
$154 million General Fund appropriation, $11 million less than the Governor proposed
Cuts spending by $41.4 million from current levels
Prioritizes spending on private sector jobs and business programs, not earmarks and special interests
Reforms:
Ends DFL practice of pass-through grants and legislative earmarking for special interests
Creates three competitive grants programs in the Department of Employment and Economic Development
Encourages small-business expansion through newly created loan guarantee program
Cuts funding to the MN Trade Office at an ongoing rate of 5 percent per year
Minimizes the use of fees
Agriculture
Spending:
$76.8 million General Fund appropriation, $1 million less than the Governor proposed
Cuts spending by $9.9 million from current levels
Prioritizes spending on the livestock and grain industries, the health and safety of our food supply system, and our ever-increasing export programs
Reforms:
Ends ethanol subsidies by making the final ethanol producer deficiency payment in 2012
State Government Innovations and Veterans
Spending:
$818.9 million General Fund appropriation, $53.6 million less than the Governor proposed
Cuts spending by $68 million from current levels
Reduces funding for constitutional offices, the legislature, and state agencies by 5 percent
Increases spending for Veterans Affairs and Military Affairs by 2.7 and 6 percent respectively
Reforms:
Consolidates Office of Enterprise Technology services throughout government
Requires E-Verify status check to be used by all businesses that contract with the state
Establishes a Sunset Advisory Commission to review state agencies, improve operations, and consolidate programs
Calls for strategic sourcing with private firms to ensure efficiencies in state buildings and vehicle fleet management
Requires the Department of Revenue to seek tax fraud prevention measures and increase delinquent collections
Links state employee pay to performance, with salary increases subject to sufficient ratings
Issues up to $10 million in appropriated bonds through MN Management & Budget in a “pay for performance” pilot project with cost efficient non-profits
Swearing In Ceremony January 4, 2011
I will be sworn into office with the whole Minnesota House of Representatives on Tuesday, January 4. I am looking forward to beginning the legislative session and the work to be done. This will certainly be a challenging session but we have an opportunity to reshape the future of our state for the better. I have been very encouraged by statements coming from Republican Leadership about the messages we all received during the campaign. We will be focused on making government more responsive, more efficient (read smaller), and more effective. We we also be focused on creating a business climate that attracts investment to create jobs. We will also be returning more authority back into the hands of the people closest to the need, namely local government, by eliminating wasteful mandates and maintenance of effort requirements. By the end of January I will begin sending out bi-monthly E-News updates. We will begin asking for email addresses from individuals interested in receiving the updates.
Campaign Sign Return & Pickup
This election cycle is in the history books and its time to pick up the campaign signs. Most have been picked up but in the process it was found that many had been taken in by homeowners. If you have a sign and would like it picked up please send an email to benson4rep@gmail.com providing your name and address, and the place where it can be found if left outside.
Thank you!
Benson Wins!
The votes are in and the unofficial totals are: Benson 9711 Welti 8823
I received a call at 10:58 on election night from Representative Andy Welti to congratulate me on the win. I want to thank him for his 6 years of service to the people of District 30B and I wish him the very best.
I have so many people to thank for this win but I first need to thank the people of 30B who had the confidence to elect me to represent them in St Paul. I am truly humbled and honored and my promise is to serve you faithfully.
I have to thank my wife for being there for me from the very beginning. Together we lit dropped and knocked on over 10,000 doors in 30B.
I also have to thank all those who were part of my campaign team and gave a tremendous amount of time and effort.
I also had very valuable assistance from individual campaigns teams in Stewartville, Eyota, and Plainview. A special thanks to Representative Drazkowski and the Plainview Elephant Club.
After a few days of rest and celebrating with my mom for her 80th birthday it will be time to get busy. There is a lot of work to be done in St Paul and we have to hit the ground running!
Mike Supports 2nd Amendment
Mike fully supports the 2nd Amendment. He is a member of the NRA, holds a Minnesota Permit to Carry, is a member of the Southern Minnesota Sportmans Club and has been a life long hunter and gun owner.
He received an “A” rating on the 2010 NRA Candidates for Public Office Election survey but since he has not held an elected office before he has no record on voting.
It is NRA policy to endorse encumbent elected officials if they do not have a record of voting for anti gun legislation. The Benson 2010 Campaign has no information about any gun legislation voted for or against by his opponent.
Latest Campaign Radio Ad Text
This is Mike Benson, Republican candidate for District 30B. With just a few days left in the campaign my opponent’s party, the DFL, has turned on the attack ads to deflect attention away from his liberal record of taxing and spending. The focus should be on what will really count after November 2nd.
My promise to you is to reform government to make it more responsive and to lower taxes to create jobs, putting Minnesotans back to work. I know you can’t be fooled and on Election Day you’ll make the right choice. Vote Mike Benson. Paid for by the Benson 2010 Campaign Committee.
2010 Campaign Radio Scripts
Ad #1.
This is Mike Benson, Republican Candidate for State Representative. On Election Day you will have the opportunity to directly affect the wellbeing of your family and all Minnesotans. It’s time for new vision, and new leadership in St Paul who understand the best way to help Minnesota families is adding jobs by eliminating the barriers to job creation, high taxes and over regulation. Help me be that new leadership. For a stable and prosperous future vote Mike Benson. Paid for by the Benson 2010 A Better Minnesota Campaign Committee
Ad#2.
This is Mike Benson, Republican Candidate for State Representative. I believe local governments are better equipped to decide how tax dollars are spent in our communities because they are closer to the need. I’ll work to eliminate unfunded state mandates and maintenance of effort requirements that result in the wasteful use of your tax dollars. It’s time for new leadership in St Paul. Please vote for Mike Benson and together we’ll make a difference. Paid for by the Benson 2010 A Better Minnesota Campaign Committee.
Ad#3.
This is Mike Benson, Republican Candidate for State Representative. Free and fair elections are foundational to our republic. Our citizens must expect that their vote will count and can not be stolen by nefarious and illegal means. I’ll work to require a voter id to help to make sure voters have greater confidence their vote will really count It’s time for new leadership in St Paul. Please vote for Mike Benson and together we’ll make a difference. Paid for by the Benson 2010 A Better Minnesota Campaign Committee.
Mike Benson Earns North Star Designation
Mike Benson has proven his ability to take on Andy Welti, an out-of-touch liberal Democrat who blindly supports the DFL call for job killing higher taxes and bigger and bigger government with reckless spending,” said Steve Perkins the CD1GOP chair. “Neither your family nor my family can live this way, and Mike’s campaign is a symbol of the voters understanding of simple economics that our current legislature does not understand. Mike Benson presents a very clear alternative to the tax, spend and borrow philosophy of the DFL. We fully intend to offer Minnesotans a better and more prosperous direction after the November elections.”
As a successful Business Executive, Educator, and family man, Mike Benson knows firsthand the problems we face in Olmsted and Wabasha counties. He has long history of community service as a volunteer, mentor, and board member. Benson and his wife Susan, who is a Special Education Para-Educator, have 4 children, 3 sons-in-law, and 3 granddaughters and are active members of the Hope Summit Christian Church. He attended Eastern University in St Davids PA and earned a BA in Organizational Management and a Masters of Business Administration.
The GOP North Star program was founded in 2010 by CD1GOP and patterned after the National Republican Congressional Committee “Young Guns” program. It is dedicated to electing open seat and challenger candidates throughout Minnesota’s 1
In conclusion, Perkins said, “We fully intend to win the seat , not for ourselves but for the people of District 30B and Southern Minnesota. It is time for the return to common sense government and Mike Benson is the perfect fit for this district.”
st Congressional District. The North Star status is a symbol that Mike Benson is ready take on Andy Welti and his failed policies of the past.
Plainview Golf Tourney and Parade
Great fun and great success in Plainview with a Golf Tourney. Many thanks to Frank and Julene Horstman and Kevin Olson. Parade at Corn on the Cob Days was lots of fun. We had at least 40 walkers with us! It is so much appreciated! We had many wonderful comments from the wonderful people of Plainview and other communities.
