Kubly says bonding, budget and jobs bill are key components of 2010 legislative session

The final product of the recently concluded legislative session isn’t anything to be proud of, says state senator Gary Kubly of Granite Falls.
According to Sen. Kubly, the three most important aspects of the budget involved the bonding bill, the jobs bill and the budget balancing bill. Not all were created equal, however.
Of all the bills, Kubly considered the jobs bill the bright spot of the session, calling it the best jobs bill that he has seen in his 14 years in the legislature. He said the legislation will use a variety of tax credits and financial incentives to spark investment and jobs in start-up companies, construction projects, and local economic development initiatives. A special presentation informing local businesses of the available incentives will be held at Valentino’s Restaurant in Montevideo on June 14 at noon.

Bonding bill
After suggesting that he would sign into a law a capital investment bill nearing $1 billion, Governor Tim Pawlenty used line-item vetoes to reduce the final bill to $686 million. Kubly indicated mixed feelings for the bill. He viewed it as containing many worthwhile projects, but felt it would have been wise to incorporate significantly more. The senator rationalized that many of the proposed projects that were vetoed by the governor will have to be completed in the near future and it would make sense to go forward with them now when interest rates and the price of construction is so low.
“Bonds are bringing in a much smaller return and projects are coming well under expected bids,” Kubly said.
The City of Granite Falls specifically benefited from the bill to the tune of $1.5 million dollars that will be split between two projects involving flood mitigation and the repair of the Roebling Suspension Pedestrian Bridge, also known simply as “the foot bridge”.  
The City will receive approximately $1 million of a requested $2.4 million for levee work, which will construct the second phase of a flood mitigation project involving the dike that extends from behind the city garage and fire hall to the BNSF railroad near the Martin Marietta quarry.  The funds are part of a $63 million allocation for flood mitigation projects statewide. It is possible that the City may receive additional funding from that allocation if money is available once the levee project is completed. There remain several additional flood-related projects to be tackled in and near the city.
Additionally, up to $500,000 in the bill has been allocated as a 50 percent matching grant that is available for repairs to the foot bridge. The cost of those repairs are expected to be in the neighborhood of $1 million. The city will be required to use non-state monies for the remainder of the repair costs.

Budget balancing
The late-breaking budget bill was passed on the final day of the session and was signed into law by the governor. It incorporates many of the unilateral budget unallotments Pawlenty made last year. That unilateral action was ruled unconstitutional by the Minnesota Supreme Court in April. The bill is said to be balanced, but Kubly argues that point. He indicated that the term, at best, should be used loosely as nearly $2 billion of the deficit is being covered by shifting school aid payments over to the next biennium while an additional $400 million is expected to come from Congress, and the federal aid is not guaranteed.
The $2 billion shift, in tandem with additional projected shortfalls already has experts forecasting a $6 to $8 billion deficit for the 2011-2012 biennium. Kubly said he expects the budget to be the number one priority throughout next year’s budget session which will begin in January.