Democrats in the Minnesota House drew official battle lines with the Senate Tuesday night, passing a major funding bill that would give public schools a significantly larger increase than Republicans propose. House Speaker Melissa Hortman says the Senate has an “austerity budget” when it isn’t needed. “Minnesotans are not asking for that. Minnesotans are asking for us to invest in our education for all the kids,” Hortman says.
But Little Falls Republican Ron Kresha (KREE-shaw) says about House Democrats’ plan: “We all support making sure schools are funded and that they have the resources they need, but this bill simply is unrealistic.” Kresha says Governor Tim Walz and Democrats want to raid transportation funding to pay for schools, then fill the gap with a gas tax increase.