Legislative Session Ends With Disappointment in Minnesota

Despite evidence that a majority of Minnesotans supported an income tax increase on better off Minnesotans in exchange for property tax cuts, the legislative session ended without the creation of a new top income tax bracket. The bill sent to Governor Tim Pawlenty would have created a new 9 percent top income tax rate for married couples with taxable income above $400,000 ($226,000 for singles), but Governor Pawlenty vetoed the legislation and the battle for progressive taxes will have to wait for another year. In the meantime, the Star-Tribune is right when it says that the Governor's veto, "keeps Minnesota on a road toward more regressive taxation."