On Your Marks.

The legislative session gets started tomorrow and it's difficult to determine at this point whether it will be a sprint or a middle-distance race.  It can't be a marathon because it's starting in the second-to-last week in February instead of the first week of January, but given the somewhat compressed timeline, we may be dealing with the problem of trying to fit ten pounds of potatoes into a five-pound sack.  The deadlines have not been set, but there is conjecture that both legislative bodies would like to have their bills out of their last committees and on the floor by the Passover/Easter break, which begins on March 30.  That would leave about six weeks after the Legislature would return to finish its work.  This scenario is simply spit-balling on my part and we'll know more in the next week.

There will likely be some wrangling on the Senate floor tomorrow, where DFLers will probably contest Senator/Lieutenant Governor Michelle Fishbach's status as holder of two offices.  A court decision dismissing the lawsuit contesting her dual role was dismissed last week, but that won't put the issue completely to bed.  It will be interesting to see how this plays out as the session grinds on.

An issue of primary importance to all sides is that of federal tax conformity.  Given the massive Federal overhaul of the tax system in December, it has caused a number of issues that complicate a complete conformity with the newly-minted changes by Minnesota.  A lot of the problem deals with the change in Federally Adjusted Gross Income that results from the changes at the national level.  Because it is a high-tax state, many Minnesotans are losing a considerable deduction due to the capping of the Federal state/local tax deduction at $10,000.

Here's a very good primer on how the issue may play out from Sunday's Minneapolis StarTribune written by two guys who know what they are talking (or in this case writing) about in former Minnesota Finance Commissioner (among other high-profile jobs) Peter Hutchinson and former Minnesota Revenue Commissioner John James.  

Link:  Tax reform: For Minnesota, the federal act is a hard one to follow.  This item is definitely worth reading as it lays out the major issues the Legislature and Governor will face in resolving this issue.

After that, the main issues that seem to be bubbling up are the bonding bill and a bill to prevent opioid abuse.  This article by Tim Pugmire from MPR outlines some of issues that appear to be on top of the legislative heap.

Link:  Penny-a-pill funding for opioid abuse now in question

Interesting Article.  I sometimes overlook issues from my myriad of magazine subscriptions and I clearly missed the boat by not looking more closely at the October issue of The Atlantic.  Here is a really great article that hits at the heart of one of the primary missions of our public school system and how that mission may be eroding.  Anyway, take a look.

Link:  Americans Have Given Up on Public Schools. That’s a Mistake.