DFL Education Foundation

Minnesota's Taxes: Not so Fair Anymore

It's April 17th and the deadline for filing income taxes this year.  It's also a chance for us to remember that Minnesota's tax system is becoming increasingly regressive.  In the past, our state has made an effort to keep the system proportional - meaning everyone paid about the same percentage of their income in total taxes.  However, after the permanent tax cuts enacted between 1997 and 2001, the top 1% of income earners in Minnesota now pay only 9.0% of their income, whereas the average is 11.3%.  Find out more at www.mncn.org/bp/incid05.pdf ("Minnesota Taxes: Who Pays and How Much," Minnesota Budget Project).

Other ideas?

A couple weeks ago Arvonne Fraser wrote here that we have a need to rebuild Social Security and ensure that it will be an effective net in the future. Robert Reich, at www.prospect.org, agrees that there is a problem. He has written...

John Farrell, a gratuate student at the University of Minnesota and a Board Member of the DFL Education Foundation recently gave this lecture on juvenile justice.  It is worth reading.