From the desk of Representative Natalie Zeleznikar

Dear Northlanders,

The legislative session is back to a tie, with 67 Republicans and 67 Democrats. For any bill to leave the House floor it requires 68 votes, and there­fore bipartisan work. I am hopeful we will see bipartisan work to move important bills for our communities and state. One example of bipartisan work to date is HF 72 which would prohibit those who re­ceive state money from mak­ing campaign contributions for political purposes.

Below is a summary of some key items I am frequently asked about with examples to follow.

What happened to the $18 Billion dollar surplus?

1. $30 million was allocated to create a new Department of Children and Families. When I asked if this money would be helping add one new family or center child­care center the answer was no. This Department previ­ously resided in the Depart­ment of Human Services.

2. $49.5 million to create a new Department of Canna­bis for legalized marijuana in MN.

3. $195 million for a train from Minneapolis to Dulu­th called Northern Lights Express.

4. $128 million to start up for Paid Family Leave which starts Jan 1, 2026.

5. $750 million for new state office building for State Representatives who reside in these offices 8 months every 24 months of the bi­ennium during session.

6. $365 million for illegals to receive free healthcare.

7. $135 million for schools to give unemployment for hourly bus drivers, para­professionals and others for summers in k-12 and col­leges.

What is the current financial situation for Minnesota?

1. The forecast revealed a $6 Billion dollar deficit. Gov­ernment grew 40% with some examples listed above and now the consequences are showing up in the state’s fiscal forecast.

How do we get Minnesota back on track?

2. First, we have a spending problem. We must not im­pose more taxes on taxpay­ers. According to the Tax Foundation 2025 report, Minnesota ranks 44th out of 50 states in overall tax com­petitiveness. Corporate tax is 9.8% which is highest in the US. Individual income state taxes are 5.35-9.85% ranking in the bottom ten states. MN has high unem­ployment insurance taxes for employers ranking 42nd out of 50.

What solutions do you have to get MN back on track?

1. Ensure property taxes are not escalating any higher. Offer seniors and disabled veterans better property tax relief, and we have several bills for just that. Taxpay­ers should know they may be eligible for two types of property tax refunds: Homestead credit regular property tax refund) based on your household income and the amount of proper­ty tax paid on your prin­cipal residence. The other is a Special Property Tax Refund if your net proper­ty tax increased by at least 12%and $100 from the pre­vious year, regardless of your income. Please apply for these refunds using form M1PR, the filing deadline is August 1, and please file at www.revenue.state.mn.us (Homestead Credit Refund and Renter’s Property Tax Refund.

2. Ensure social security taxes for MN are fully eliminated for everyone.

3. Offer the lowest tax brack­et tax relief with no tax­es for the first $47,670 for those married and $32,700 for singles. Keep in mind 9 states have no individual income taxes, 9 states have a flat tax below 5.35%, and 7 states have their low­est tax below 5.35%. This means 25 states have a tax rate lower than MN, and I look forward to true bipar­tisan support for tax relief.

4. Offer child tax credits for middle income. Fund class­rooms vs. increasing MN Dept of Ed budget in St. Paul.

5. Ensure small businesses are supported by policies at a state level that are reason­able for all sized and scaled businesses to succeed. Without a strong commer­cial tax, the tax burden is shifted to individual prop­erty owners.

6. Ensure accountability and end $600 million of fraud documented by Auditors to ensure essential core ser­vices receive funding. A fraud committee began for the first time in 2025.

Property taxes are a formu­la reflecting budgets from the city/county/school district and if mandates come from the state from legislation the consequences can show up in property taxes. Here are a few examples. The Gover­nor’s Budget proposes to shift $460 million of costs to the counties, school districts have many unfunded mandates to cover unemployment for hour­ly workers in the summer, and several other legislation pieces that go into effect in 2026 will have a direct impact to all en­tities with unfunded mandates passed to the local government unit.

I look forward to working together to address these challenges and continue to make our community stronger. Feel free to contact me any time with suggestions, ideas, or concerns at rep.natalie.zeleznikar@house.mn.us or 651-297-5603. For those who like to text my cell number is 218-409-6822.

Sincerely,
Rep. Natalie Zeleznikar