Speakers include a Mankato police officer, a St. Paul firefighter, a Minneapolis parks worker, a St. Paul librarian, and several mayors and legislators.
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26Mar
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26Mar
Hundreds of fired-up LGA supporters braved the cold to voice their support for the people and jobs that keep Minnesota communities strong. Thank LGA would like to thank everyone who attended our rally on the Capitol steps this afternoon, and is happy to report that the event was a huge success! Our message to the Legislature and the governor was strong: cutting LGA will result in thousands of public and private layoffs across the state, and residents will see drastic cuts to the services they depend on. As many of the speakers noted, the rally to save LGA must continue. Be sure to contact your legislators and the governor, and tell them to protect LGA.
Special thanks to our library supporters for the great pictures!
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25Mar
Looking for a change of scenery for your lunch break? Then join hundreds of police officers, firefighters, librarians, parks workers, mayors, and LGA supporters from around the state for an LGA rally on the Capitol steps in St. Paul tomorrow, March 26, from 12:00 – 12:30 p.m. This is your chance to stand up for the city services you depend on and the affordability of your community.
As members of the Legislature consider ways to deal with the state’ s budget deficit, they need to hear from the public about the programs that matter most. We need as large of a crowd as possible to show them that LGA is what keeps Minnesota communities strong. Don’t forget to tell your friends, bring your co-workers, and make a sign to show support for your library, police force, low property taxes, and other LGA-supported programs!
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24Mar
A report released today by Minnesota 2020 titled “Bleeding Communities Dry: How LGA Cuts are Hurting Rural Minnesota” paints a gloomy picture: when the state underfunds LGA—as it has over the last decade—property taxpayers are the ones that pick up the tab, paying more for city services and receiving less in return.
Click here to view the Minnesota 2020 report.
With a crumbling housing market and rampant job losses, Minnesotans are already stretched to their limits. Now is not the time to cut needed services, layoff thousands of city employees statewide, and pull the trigger on massive property tax increases. Contact your legislators and the governor, and tell them that cutting LGA is the wrong policy and the wrong direction for the state.
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24Mar
The Crookston Times reports today that area libraries are reducing operating hours in order to deal with budget cuts. The Ada library will be closed for two weeks in the spring and two weeks in the summer. Libraries in Fertile and Climax, which are operating at the minimum 20 hours per week required to receive state aid, will reduce expenditures such as librarian planning hours to avoid reducing operating hours any further. The McIntosh library, which currently operates 21 hours per week, will lose one hour in order to stay open the minimum 20 hours for state funding. The Fosston library will reduce library assistant time by four hours per week and will be closed on Saturdays starting in April.
These cuts come at the same time as libraries are seeing record usership from families, jobseekers, and community members. To keep your library open, contact your legislators and the governor, and tell them that communities cannot afford further LGA cuts.
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23Mar
According to the St. Cloud Times, at least seven city police departments across the state have completely dissolved since the beginning of 2009 as cities manage shrinking budgets and prepare for potential LGA cuts.
This news does not bode well for public safety in Minnesota. Over the last 10 years, an average of three police departments have dissolved each year; for 2009, that figure has more than doubled with nine months remaining in the year and the future of LGA funding in jeopardy. For most cities, public safety expenditures account for the largest portion of their budgets, making cuts to police and fire protection nearly unavoidable when LGA funding is significantly reduced.
While troubling, this story illustrates the purpose and effectiveness of the LGA program. LGA was created because without this funding, the cost of basic services—police, fire protection, safe roads, parks, and libraries—would become grossly unaffordable to cities that have low property wealth or high need. As police departments in cities across the state disappear, we are already witnessing the consequences of cutting the LGA program: some Minnesotans will be entitled to faster response times to car accidents, updated and properly functioning public safety equipment, and police presence in schools and at community functions; some Minnesotans will not. This isn’t a Minnesota that many of us would want to live in, and because of LGA, we don’t have to. Continue reading »
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18Mar
According to the Marshall Independent, the City of Minneota, located on Hwy 68 northwest of Marshall, is considering several service reductions in order to make up for potential losses in LGA, among which is reorganizing or elminating its police department. The city has also proposed freezing city wages, delaying equipment purchases, reducing the city swimming pool, and reducing money budgeted for planting shade trees. Continue reading »
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17Mar
MPR is reporting this morning that the Department of Revenue predicts total property taxes will increase $626 million under the governor’s budget proposal. This increase is a result of the governor’s proposed reductions in state aid to local governments.
Unfortunately, this news comes as no surprise to local officials. Since the governor’s cuts to state aid in 2003, total property taxes (including areas such as cities, counties, and school districts) have risen 45% across the state. The governor can’t expect that recycling the aid cuts of 2003 will achieve different results. Continue reading »