Minnesota Governor Tim Walz is outlining another phase of his budget request to the Legislature today, this one focusing on health and safety.
“Whether that is being able to respond, as you just saw, in an emergency, being able to provide protective and police services, being able to make sure everybody goes home at night and has a home, a safe home to live in, and access to healthcare,” says Governor Walz. “All of those things are the core of what enhances life in Minnesota.”
Walz is proposing spending $300 million on public safety, expanding access to quality healthcare, increasing spending to combat the opioid crisis, and investing $1.5 billion in affordable housing to help prevent homelessness before it occurs.
“We want Minnesota to be the best place to raise a family and have children,” said Walz. “We know that that can't be possible if you do not have housing stability. Housing stability is everything when it comes to having them ready for school, being in a safe environment and making sure they're able to achieve and thrive where they need to.”
Walz has been trickling out information on his budget proposal over the last week. At AgExpo in Mankato he spoke about providing more money for farmers who produce biofuels, and wants to eliminate the dependency on property taxes to fund agricultural spending by the state.
Proposals by Walz also include increasing school lunch programs and lowering the cost of child care for families.
With DFL control of the House and Senate, issues with public safety and other budget proposals that couldn’t get through the divided Legislature now stand a better chance of passage.
The entire two year budget is expected to be released Tuesday.
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