The clock is ticking for state lawmakers in St. Paul as the 2023 legislative session comes to end Monday night.
Work continued over the weekend with a final vote taken Sunday on the tax and transportation bill. the tax bill includes a metro sales tax and a new delivery free to pay for projects. The transportation finance package will invest over $3.7 billion in new money over the next four years.
"The last time we did anything major to try and help keep up with our needs was when the 35W bridge collapsed," Jaime Long, the Majority Leader of the Minnesota House of Representatives, told WCCO Radio's Vineeta Sawkar on Monday. "We really can't wait for a moment like that to happen again to make sure we're investing in our infrastructure."
If Governor Tim Walz signs the $1.3 billion transportation bill, it would increase the gas tax by 5-cents over the current rate of 28.5 cents a gallon by fiscal year 2027.
With it comes a metro-area sales tax to fund transit projects and a 50-cent fee on deliveries over $100.
Republican Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson was a guest on the Sunday Take with WCCO Radio Political analyst Blois Olson and said it remains to be seen how Minnesotans react.
"It'll be interesting when they go back and have to go to the grocery store and the gas station and have to face the constituents who ask about not getting their tax rebate back, why tax rates aren't lower, why tabs and vehicle registrations are higher."
With Monday night's midnight deadline looming, state lawmakers will be working on a health finance bill throughout the day.