Governor Pawlenty, Do Something

12/11/2007

Northstar Signing Today Points Out Governor’s Do-Nothing Approach; Local Governments Face Consequences of Doing Nothing on Property-Tax Relief


St. Paul, MN (December 11, 2007) As Governor Pawlenty staged a photo-op today to sign the federal funding agreement for Northstar commuter rail, the Minnesota DFL Party said that the event points out the governor’s consistent refusal to do something about Minnesota’s pressing transportation issues. The Party also said that this week’s looming deadline for local governments to set their 2008 levies highlights the governor’s do-nothing approach to property-tax relief.

“Governor Pawlenty is good at grabbing headlines, but when it comes to actually doing something on Minnesota’s most pressing issues, he keeps ducking,” said Brian Melendez, Minnesota DFL Chair. “He’s had more than enough opportunities to lead on transportation and property-tax relief, but instead he’s done nothing as needs go unmet and people are hurting.”

“I applaud Governor Pawlenty for finally getting on board with Northstar, which for residents of Hennepin County and the northwest corridor is long overdue. But it didn’t have to take this long,” said Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin. “Had Governor Pawlenty not stood in Northstar’s way for so many years, it would already be done all the way to St. Cloud, with a stop in Fridley and at far less cost.

“His getting on board with Northstar so late in the game is emblematic of the state of our transportation system overall. We’re behind in Minnesota and falling farther behind, because we don’t have a reliable funding mechanism in place for building and repairing roads and bridges, or for making reality a 21st-century transit system that we desperately need to stay economically competitive.”

“The lack of reliable transportation funding also means that thousands of people who are ready to work aren’t getting jobs,” said Todd Pufahl, legislative director for the Laborers’ District Council of Minnesota and North Dakota. “At a time when Minnesota’s economy is struggling, and when cities and counties are adding to their property-tax levies because the state won’t meet its transportation obligations, we have to do better. That means we have to do something.”

“Governor Pawlenty’s do-nothing approach is causing Minnesota’s future to slip from our hands,” said Representative Alice Hausman, chair of the Capital Investment Committee. “We used to be a state where people came together to get things done together for our future. DFLers are still ready and willing to do that — but this governor apparently believes in doing nothing.

“But doing nothing comes with consequences, and if we don’t get together to do something now, our transportation system will crumble underneath us, we will continue to fall behind economically, and the quality of life for which we have always been known will suffer.”