This is my first term as a state representative, so I hadn't personally witnessed a State of the State address until Thursday. Considering some of the issues we are facing, I have to believe Gov. Pawlenty's speech was one of the most important to be delivered in recent Minnesota history.
The governor stood at the podium in the House Chamber and covered a variety of topics, spending considerable time on the struggling economy and the nearly $5 billion deficit our state faces. Instead of taking a doomsday tone, Pawlenty was somewhat upbeat as he talked about how Minnesotans are proud, resourceful folks who will work together to get the job done.
I especially liked the part where the governor proposed using a kitchen-table approach to resolving our budget issues. I've used the same analogy while talking with people throughout our district and it just seems to make common sense. Families are sitting around their own kitchen tables, examining their finances and establishing priorities and it's time for government to act the same way. We need to identify what's most important, what we can afford, what we can live without and how we can become more efficient.
The governor did stress that we will remain firm in our commitment to essential services like public safety (including the military) and health care for children.
I also was interested to hear Pawlenty's thoughts on how we can stimulate the economy in rural Minnesota. As the owner of a local hardware store, creating jobs in places like District 10B is a subject that is near and dear to my heart. Business owners throughout the state have had to be resourceful in finding ways to keep their businesses afloat while protecting their employees.
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The best thing we can do is to expand the pool of workers, ultimately broadening the tax base and providing Minnesota with more revenue to balance the budget. The governor revealed several proposals to make Minnesota more attractive to businesses and we'll get into the details when they become available.
It also should be noted Pawlenty also made a specific request of the Legislature: Please do not pile more taxes on Minnesota families during these tight economic times.
We still have a big hill to climb as we work to get our budget turned around, but I agree with the guy who said we can never let a good crisis go to waste. We should look at our current situation as an opportunity to make improvements that will last for generations and I was glad to hear the governor feels the same way. His ideas seemed innovative with an eye to the future.
Mark Murdock
Ottertail
