Last month, Governor Mark Dayton vetoed three major budget bills – because they were bad for our kids, bad for our environment, and bad for our shared future. Over the last three weeks, Governor Dayton fought to make those bills better – and he has. By standing up to House Republicans, and fighting for a better outcome to this legislative session, the Governor has secured significant increases in education funding, and better environmental and consumer protections:

This is what Governor Dayton was fighting for:

A Better Education Bill – The Republican House wanted to invest just $157 million in E-12 Education this session, which was woefully inadequate to meet the needs of our students. Governor Dayton fought for a significant increase in education funding, and secured $525 million of new investments in our schools. Those new funds will increase school funding for every classroom, invest $100 million in early learning initiatives that will benefit thousands of children, provide better educations for English Language Learners and American Indian students, and more. [Read More]

A Better Jobs and Energy Bill – The Jobs and Energy Bill passed by the Legislature sought to undermine a decade of nation-leading progress on clean energy, and rolled back essential consumer protections for Minnesotans. Governor Dayton fought back, protecting funding to thoroughly review prices proposed by health insurance companies – to make sure health premiums paid by Minnesotans are justified and reasonable. The Governor secured funding to help provide job opportunities for Minnesotans with disabilities, and prevent people with mental illness from becoming homeless. And he fought to keep broadband grants competitive for communities in Greater Minnesota who need better access to high-speed internet. [Read More]

A Better Environment and Agriculture Bill – The Environment and Agriculture Bill that Governor Dayton vetoed was full of bad policies that would have rolled back critical environmental protection measures that preserve clean water, land, and air in Minnesota. The Governor fought back, eliminating provisions that would have granted indefinite amnesty for polluters, weakened water quality standards, and unnecessarily delayed essential environmental reviews. Governor Dayton also secured landmark buffer legislation that will help significantly improve water quality by designating an additional 110,000 acres around rivers and streams for permanent vegetation, preventing pollution from entering our waters. [Read More]

2015 Special Session · a better education bill · a better environment and agriculture bill · a better jobs and energy bill · Gov. Dayton · Mark Dayton