Governor Mark Dayton formally released his supplemental budget on Thursday, March 14. The Governor’s revised budget is always issued a few weeks after the February Economic Forecast and usually includes only modest changes compared to the budget that was released in January.

This year was different. As was widely anticipated, Governor Dayton significantly revised his tax recommendations by withdrawing his $2 billion sales tax reform plan and his $1.4 billion property tax rebate plan. He kept his recommendations for a new tax bracket on the top 2 percent of earners, the tobacco tax, and changes to the corporate tax. The Governor’s revenue raisers now total roughly $1.8 billion — down from more than $3.5 billion in his previous proposal.

The Governor added the following tax proposals to his plan:

• An increase in the car rental tax rate to 9.2% to generate $15 million for Explore Minnesota Tourism.
• Additional conformity to Federal Tax Law changes.
• An increase in the funding for the renter’s property tax refund.

The spending changes in the Governor’s supplemental budget were modest. To see these changes and the tax changes, go to http://www.mmb.state.mn.us/march14-13 .