There is a good story in the Star Tribune today about an upcoming challenge coming in the Minnesota House. There is a coalition forming of outstate legislators and inner city legislators to take up the issue of Local Government Aid (LGA). In last year’s budget bill, the Legislature balanced the state’s budget by mkaing significant changes to the manner in which it distributed financial assistance to cities.
This assistance, called LGA, was decreased for almost every city in the state. Eden Prairie lost 100% of its LGA. Most cities similarly situated to Eden Prairie also lost 100% of their LGA. Eden Praire was not very dependent on LGA. It comprised about 1% of our total General Fund revenues. Before I came to Eden Prairie, I worked in Northfield. In Northfield, LGA accounted for about 33% of our General Fund revenues. So a big cut in Northfield was a much bigger deal than a total cut in Eden Prairie.
Nonethless, it appears that this coalition, which appears to be led by Rep. Dan Dorman (R-Albert Lea), wants to re-open the debate and seeks more financial assistance from the state. They are particularly critical of the financial positions of the suburbs, like Eden Prairie.
At this point, Eden Prairie receives $0 from the state of Minnesota for our General Fund budget. We’ve got no state money to return to the state to give back to other needy cities. We support our own financial position in our city on the backs of our own taxpayers. We’d like other cities in the state to do the same.
