Where do legislative leaders stand on business issues?

On Tuesday, the Minnesota Chamber kicked off the 2020 legislative session with the annual Session Priorities event. We laid out the business community’s top issues for the year and heard from leaders of the House and Senate what they hope to accomplish. During a “lightning round” of questions, the four leaders shared their thoughts on issues ranging from recreational marijuana and sports betting to tax conformity and a bonding bill. Here are their answers:

A bonding bill, under $2 billion or over $2 billion?
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: Under but it should be bigger.
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: Under.
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Under.
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Under.

Department of Human Services, break it up or “move along, nothing to see here.”
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: Not yet. 
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: Break it up. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Break up part of it.
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Do a better job of understanding it first. 

February forecast, higher or lower?
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: Lower. 
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: I think it’ll be lower. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Higher. 
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Lower. 

Permits for big economic projects, the process works or the process needs work?
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: It’s making sausage. 
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: It needs a lot of work. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: It stinks. 
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: (In response to Speaker Hortman) Ditto. 

Is there going to be a tax bill, yes or no?
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: Maybe. 
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: Yes. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Yes. 
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Yes?

Section 179 in a tax bill, yes or no?
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: My tax chair would like that.
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: Definitely, yeah.
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Definitely.
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Yes…Just because we’re agreeing it might be there doesn’t mean it should necessarily be there; just throwing it out there.

Food trucks or the MNDOT cafeteria? 
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: Food trucks. 
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: Easy, food trucks. And if you’re a talented lobbyist, that’s a very good place to catch legislators and talk to them. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Food trucks. 
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Food trucks. 

Constitutional amendment on education, the one that former Supreme Court Justice Alan Page is pushing, yes or no?
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: It’s a conversation starter. 
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: Yes, and I signed on as a co-author but I’m not sure if the language is right but this is absolutely the sort of conversation we need to have. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Maybe.
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Needs work. 

Odds that sports betting will be legalized?
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: Zero
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: Zero. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Zero. 
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Zero

Legislative retirements, are there more coming, is that unlikely or probable? What do you see happening?
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: The average is about 22 to 25 a cycle so we’re not there yet. 
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: Probable. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Probable DFL? There’s not going to be in the GOP side. The other side, I don’t know. 
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Probable. 

This year’s budget surplus, buy a Ford Focus or a Ferrari? 
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: Preventative maintenance. 
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: We shouldn’t buy anything with it, we should give it back to you. Ford Focus, I guess. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: I’ll go with the focus. 
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Nothing that has a long payment plan. 

Your preferred presidential candidate? 
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: Amy Klobuchar. 
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: Trump and I think he’s going to be tough to beat this election. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Trump and his policies. 
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: I hear she’s doing really well in New Hampshire today, Senator Amy Klobuchar. 

Recreational marijuana, near future or no future? 
House Speaker Melissa Hortman: It’s the trend around the country. I think we need to take a unique approach at if it comes here, how we would do it. 
House Minority Leader Kurt Daudt: I still can’t figure out why we can’t buy beer in a gas station or grocery story but we want to legalize marijuana. No future. 
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka: Can I say zero again? No future as long as I’m there. 
Senate Minority Leader Susan Kent: Passed the near future but not no future.