Letter to the Editor, Posted: 5/12/04
To the editor:
The State Legislative Session is scheduled to end this week. Unfortunately, the Democrats and Republicans have not made much progress in resolving their differences on the bonding bill. Both sides appear intransient.
Few of us want to see the Vikings or Twins move to another market. At the same time most do no want see our bonding capacity finance new stadiums for organizations owned by billionaires that employs millionaires when the legislature is unwilling to bond $20 million for homeless Minnesotans or provide health coverage for all the children in Minnesota whose parents cannot afford it.
The legislature appears eager to provide tax breaks for the richest Minnesotans while eliminating a $200 housing credit for the poorest Minnesotans, those living in public housing. The economic policies of the Pawlenty administration have been a disaster for Minnesota; the unemployment rate remains unchanged from last month and higher than it was two years ago. Sales tax collections, an indication of spending and economic health, are down more than $30 million from the last reporting period.
The omnibus environment and transportation bill despite State Representative Eastlandís claim, according to most environmentalists, is another failure.
I donít think the Vikings or even the Governor wants to see new stadiums at the expense of the homeless and the poor. Contact your legislator and urge them to support a bonding bill that includes $20 million for the homeless and laws thatÝdonít balance the budget on the backs of the poor, hurt the environment and fail to meet the basic health and transportation needs of our citizens.
Robert G. Walz
North Branch
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