Last week, state lawmakers in the Minnesota House of Representatives moved forward on legislation that includes big benefits for individuals, families and businesses in Greater Minnesota.

Early in the week, the capital investment bill (more commonly known as the bonding bill) passed out of committee, with $850 million in bonds and $125 million in one-time cash expenditures from Minnesota’s budget surplus. The bonding bill finances statewide infrastructure projects in higher education, transportation, housing, economic development, clean water and wastewater systems – the kinds of projects that will create good jobs and lay a strong foundation for economic growth.

The House proposal includes $2.5 million to acquire land and develop 11 miles of the Shooting Star Trail from Rose Creek to Austin. Expanding the trail will help draw more tourists to southeastern Minnesota and allow more people to experience our region’s beautiful landscape and wildlife.

A few days after the bonding bill passed out of committee, the entire House passed a supplemental budget that builds on Minnesota’s positive economic momentum. This bill will go into a conference committee after the Senate passes their version of the bill. The budget invests in priorities Minnesotans broadly share, including:

More funding for every school

$54 million to boost the funding formula by one percent (an increase of $58 per student) and $3.5 million to expand the school lunch program so no student is ever denied a meal due to the inability to pay.

Job creation in Greater Minnesota

$37.5 million for investments in high-speed broadband internet, job training, and funding for the six Initiative Foundations in Greater Minnesota that provide loans and resources for small businesses.

Wage increases

$80.36 million for a 5 percent wage increase for home-and-community-based health care workers who provide care for the elderly and people with disabilities.

Critical transportation funding

Additional investments in highways, roads and bridges as well as funding for local governments to fill potholes.

Healthy meals for seniors

$425,000 for nutritionally balanced meals for seniors at community congregate dining facilities.

In addition, the bill includes $1.5 million for a bill I authored to expand a farm-to-food shelf program estimated to generate 10 million pounds of fresh, healthy food for food shelves throughout Minnesota, which would in turn produce 7.6 million meals. We also allocated $1.2 million to the University of Minnesota’s Veterinary Diagnostic Lab to combat the spread of the Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus (PEDV).

Lawmakers in the House ended the week on another positive note by passing a second tax bill that provides $103 million in additional property tax relief for farmers, homeowners, renters and businesses.

Included in the package is an immediate $18 million in property tax relief for more than 90,000 homesteaded farms (with the average family farmer receiving a $460 refund), $12.1 million in tax relief for 500,000 homeowners (with every eligible homeowner receiving a three percent boost to their refund), and $12.5 million in tax relief for 350,000 renters (with every eligible renter receiving a six percent boost to their refund).

The tax bill also includes a provision I carried which exempts Housing Redevelopment Authorities and Port Authorities from paying sales tax, which would go into effect on June 30, 2014.

I am pleased with the steps lawmakers are taking to make sure more individuals, families and businesses share in the benefits of our economy recovery, especially our communities in Greater Minnesota. We continue to work at a quick pace and do good work on behalf of the people of Minnesota.

If you have any questions or comments about the House bonding bill, supplemental budget, or any other issue, please feel free to contact me by phone at (651) 296-4193, by email at rep.jeanne.poppe@house.mn, or by postal mail at 487 State Office Building, 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155.