"I'm disappointed that Democrats in the legislature were unable to say no to projects and do not share my commitment to fiscal responsibility. In this case, someone had to exercise fiscal restraint and that job fell to me."
Dear Friends:
Today I signed the bonding bill, after using my line-item veto authority to reduce the price tag by over $200 million, taking it down to $717 million in state general bonds from the legislature's total of $925 million.
I urged the Democrat-controlled Legislature for weeks to pass a responsible bill that did not overreach during these challenging economic times. They instead chose to pass a bill that jeopardizes the state's credit rating by exceeding the traditional debt limit that we set for capital investment projects and has been followed by governors and legislators from both parties for nearly 30 years.
Included in the over 50 projects I vetoed were $70 million for a light rail line between Minneapolis and St. Paul, $11 million for a Como Zoo gorilla and polar bear exhibit, $400,000 for a brass band sheet music library and other local projects that simply cannot be funded when other statewide needs, including a new nursing facility for our veterans, have not been met.
I'm disappointed that Democrats in the legislature were unable to say no to projects and do not share my commitment to fiscal responsibility. In this case, someone had to exercise fiscal restraint and that job fell to me. If you agree with my approach, I hope you'll take a moment to call or email your legislators and let them know that government has to live within its means, just like Minnesota 's families and businesses. As we work to finalize an approach to deal with the state's $935 million deficit, I will continue to hold government accountable and prevent the Democrats from raising taxes in our already highly taxed state.Sincerely,
Tim Pawlenty
Governor
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