Latz: Public Safety, Judiciary Cuts Go Too Far

St. Louis Park’s state senator thinks Republican cuts to public safety go too far.

Sen. Ron Latz (DFL-District 44) and other Democratic senators tried to increase funding for select parts of the $1.2 billion omnibus bill. But the bill cleared the Senate’s Judiciary and Public Safety Committee on Friday below the governor’s recommendation.  

Committees are trying to hit spending targets set by Republican leaders in an effort to close the state’s roughly $5 billion deficit. Republicans aim to do that without additional revenue, such as new taxes. DFLers prefer a mix of cuts and new taxes.

As a constitutionally mandated priority, some areas of public safety have been spared the worst. The omnibus bill holds the judiciary at what Latz called a “maintenance level” and allows for a tiny increase to pay for public defenders—although Latz noted that, “The courts are extremely stressed.”

Yet it also includes cuts for guardian ad litems, civil legal services, crime prevention grants, firefighter training and other areas.

The state Human Rights Department faces the biggest cuts. Republicans want to slash its funding by more than half. The bill’s sponsor—Rep. Tony Cornish (R-District 24B), of Good Thunder—told the Star Tribune that the intent is for the department to no longer do education or outreach programs. But Latz said the cut would make it impossible for the department to investigate all the complaints it receives.

At least the two sides agree on the numbers there. That’s not the case for much of the budget. For years, Minnesota Management and Budget has analyzed the cost of proposals and publicized its estimates in so-called fiscal notes that accompany the bills. This year, Republicans have frequently disregarded those fiscal notes—and, in some cases, used figures from private companies that could compete for state contracts that aim to improve government efficiency.

DFLers say these GOP figures are unproven and little more than wishful thinking. Sen. Dick Cohen (DFL-District 64), of St. Paul, issued a blistering news release that said GOP figures for two proposals differed from the fiscal note by 1,750 percent.

St. Louis Park Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-District 44A) said he is concerned about what he labels “fuzzy math” when it comes to booking certain revenue streams in his own committee, State Government Finance.

For instance, Simon said there is a state program in place in which money is spent in order to recoup unpaid taxes. Typically, the program is a net-earner for the state, at a ratio of about $4 in for every $1 spent. However, Simon said with cuts proposed to the Minnesota Department of Revenue, which oversees the program, the chances of being able to get to that 4:1 mark are diminished. However, the 4:1 ratio is still incorporated into the budget bill.

“(Republicans) ended up booking a lot of revenue that I feel is suspect,” Simon said.

Latz was even more blunt: “Their whole budget is a farce because it relies on completely implausible assumptions … They’re making up some numbers because they can’t get enough real funds.”

Lawmakers continue to hit self-imposed deadlines for the budget process. Developing a legislative plan is only half the equation, though, because Republicans will need to avoid a veto. Latz thinks that Republican budget figures will reduce their credibility when it comes time to negotiate.

Simon said he is still hopeful that the Minnesota legislative session will end by the constitutionally targeted date of May 23, but the legislator acknowledged that a lot of work remains on budget bills.

Said Latz: “I expect that the Republicans will make sure the trains run on time. That doesn’t mean you like where it’s going.”