Category: Legislative Review

BILL TO COMPENSATE I-35 BRIDGE SURVIVORS PASSES HOUSE

In a bi-partisan demonstration of support, the Minnesota House has approved a fund to compensate survivors of the I-35W Bridge collapse. Passed on a 127-5 vote, the bill creates a $38 million fund to help meet survivors' outstanding medical costs, long-term disability needs, lost wages, and other damages that resulted from the bridge collapse.

"The bridge collapse last summer was a tragedy unlike any other in Minnesota's history," said Rep. Shelley Madore (DFL-Apple Valley). "While we can never change the events of the day, we can with this bill, provide survivors with the resources they need to move forward and begin to heal."

The $38 million compensation fund allows each victim to receive up to $400 thousand out of a $28 million primary fund. A supplemental $12.64 million fund will be available for the most severely injured to recover uncompensated medical expenses, long-term health costs, and lost wages. $750,000 will be appropriated for administrative expenses, and $610,000 will be directed to Waite House – the community organization supporting children who were on a bus when the I-35W Bridge collapsed. A three-member panel of special masters will be appointed by the Minnesota Supreme Court this summer to appropriate funds to survivors and victims families. By opting into the Fund, survivors agree to waive their right to sue the state for compensatory damages.

"By passing this bill, with input from so many of the survivors and families, we're taking a responsible approach to recognizing their needs and protecting the interests of the state," said Madore. "It's a good step in the process of helping survivors and Minnesota begin to recover from this disaster."

The bill was signed into law this past week.

Category: Property Taxes

The 2008 House Tax Bill provides significant property tax relief through the creation of the Homestead Credit State Refund based on a home owner's ability to pay. The revenue-neutral proposal targets property tax relief directly to homeowners with incomes up to $200,000 who pay more than 2% of their income in property taxes.

To see how this proposal affects you and your constituents you can do calculations with the online calculator provided by House Research. The link is on the Tax Committee website at - http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/comm/committee.asp?comm=3000.

In the Property Tax Relief Calculator spreadsheet, enter the following items as listed in column C:

filing status
income
home value
property tax on homestead
property tax on cabin (0 if none)
number of children claimed as dependents
number senior/disabled (1 for homeowner, 2 for homeowner and spouse)

The second sentence in the middle of the screen will show property tax for the example you've entered as a percent of income. Property taxes in excess of 2 percent of income qualify for a refund, if income is less than $200,000.

The lower box on the screen will display property tax benefits for the example you've entered for current law and for the proposal in HF 3149. A positive change number indicates higher benefits under the proposal, a negative number indicates lower benefits under the proposal.

I hope you do your calculation and please let me know if this bill benefits your family. My guess is that it will.

Thank you,
Shelley