OACCT Public Policy Committee Outlines 2013 Agenda with City Council

OACCT President Brad Meier and Public Policy
committee members Andy Michaeltz and Steve Kath
thank City Council for their LEAN efficiency efforts
 in 2012 and present Policy's 2013 Legislative Agenda.

The Chamber's Public Policy committee thanked the City Council for their LEAN efficiency efforts made in 2012 at their Dec. 18th meeting.

Chamber President Brad Meier also shared the Chamber's 2013 Legislative Agenda so Council could see where local business interests and issues will stack up next year.

2013 Goals and Issues:
Public Policy to attend 90% of all City Council meetings and report to the membership via website blog posting.

Top Issues:

• City Efficiency: continue the LEAN process improvement plan at the City of Owatonna started in 2010 and funded by two grants obtained by the Chamber (complete a total of 8 process improvements).
• City Budget Process: advocate costs alignment directly with programming and a plan for reduction in Local Government Aid (LGA).
• School District: Share business community’s input on future school district proposals; represent business in the superintendant search, potential levy and actively represent business and area workforce development in potential budget cuts.
• Property taxes: be watchful of public sector’s proposals, purposes and gains for tax payers.  Identify as much quality for business in property taxes increase proposals, if it’s not there, oppose the increase.

MN Chamber Hosts Regional Issues Discussion

Jennifer Byers, MN Chamber of Commerce facilitates
a regional issues discussion as the start of the new
legislative session is around the corner.
Contact Jennifer Byers with questions at
651-292-4673 or jbyers@mnchamber.com.

Regional and statewide businesses face challenges from workforce and finding skilled employees to tax burdens and a need for reform.

Minnesota Chamber's Jennifer Byers shared with the regional group the organization's top Federation Partner issues that they'll be working on during the 2013 session.  Issues include:

Workforce Development
Workforce development is a leadership issue for the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce.  Our focus includes recommendations at both the K-12 and postsecondary education levels, and significant engagement by the Minnesota business community around the state.

K-12 Education
•Better alignment of K-12 and postsecondary standards and assessments to ensure that students are prepared to enter postsecondary education
•Expand postsecondary options for high school students
•Integrate career and workforce awareness so that students are knowledgeable about high demand careers
Postsecondary Education:  Affordable and efficient
•Expand performance-benchmarked funding
•Improve cost control efforts
•Produce certificates and degrees in workforce demand areas
•Improve affordability for students
•Reduce remediation at postsecondary institutions
Collaborate & Innovate
•Emphasize public investment in research and outcomes
•Businesses must be a partner

Spending and Tax Reform
We know that tax reform will be a major focus of the 2013 Legislative Session.  The Minnesota Chamber of Commerce will work to ensure that spending reform is at the center of the discussion.

Spending reforms should focus on:
•Adopting priorities and outcomes approach to budgeting
•Limit permanent spending increases to long-run trend in forecasted revenues
•More progressive and means-tested spending

Tax Reforms should:
•Be revenue neutral.
•Advance competitiveness, stability, efficiency and help grow Minnesota’s economy
•Not add any additional costs or burdens that will impede business retention or growth
•Enact some provisions that will help competitiveness such as sales tax e-fairness; capital equipment up-front exemption, as fiscal conditions allow

Health Insurance Exchange
We have an opportunity to work with the Legislature and the Governor to implement a Minnesota health insurance exchange. Key criteria for an effective exchange include:

•Private governance
•Financial independence
•Marketplace facilitator, not creator
•Maximize consumer choice
•Ensure accountability and continuous improvement
•Business driven

Energy
Our policy objective is to restructure electric rates so that all ratepayers pay the actual cost of service.

Environment
We plan to build on our recent track record to implement additional efficiencies in the environmental review process to ensure that permits are issued in a more timely and affordable manner, while still protecting Minnesota’s environment.

Election Reform
The Minnesota Chamber supports moving the primary to June to drive stronger voter turn-out, ensure a more representative candidate selection process and maximize voter and constituent contact during the campaign.

Coffee with State Legislature

Representative Elect John Petersburg and Senator Elect Vicki Jensen
met with members this morning to discuss
business issues like Highway 14, tax reform,
E-12 Education and state budget.  

OACCT members gathered to meet to our newly elected state representatives, gain their insights on how a new majority caucus will effect legislation and ask how our officials will approach the completion of Highway 14.

We look forward to working with Senator Jensen and Representative Petersburg.

County Legislative Agenda Check-In: Dec. 11, 2012

OACCT Public Policy Committee meets with
County Commissioners to  check-in on  business issue
progress made this year and to share
2013 legislative/business priorities with them.

Members of the OACCT's Public Policy committee attended the County Commissioner's Committee of the Whole meeting Tuesday to thank them for their efforts on greater transparency with online efforts like the budget, meeting notices and meeting agendas with supporting documentation, all of which were items the Public Policy committee discussed with them earlier this year.

The Policy committee also shared the organization's 2013 legislative agenda to give clarity and encourage open communication to our elected officials of business issues and priorities for the upcoming year. Items include: advocating for an economically reasonable size and scope of the Public Works project; transparency with county meetings either streamed online or available via cable broadcasting; and supporting local government in local control versus state or federal mandated initiatives.

Commissioners shared that the Facilities Committee of county met earlier that day to discuss a "restart" of the Public Works facility.  Brainstormed items included enlarging the committee with other people, possibly from the public or business community; commissioners to appoint a constituent to serve on the committee, educate this group on what's been done to date and then move forward.  The OACCT again offered assistance or involvement in future steps with this project.

City Council Notes-Nov. 20, 2012

A part of the OACCT's Public Policy efforts for 2012 is for volunteers from the Public Policy committee attend both City and County meetings and report back on items that are of interest/concern to business.

Items of note:

1) Cable agreement - Jaguar has expressed interest as well as Hickory Tech.  However Hickory Tech has put in major infrastructure recently elsewhere, so looking at next 3-5 years for Owatonna.

2)  Flood Grant Demo - Two additional homes have been purchased for demolition - net effect to the budget = $0 (there will be a timing difference of payment of costs and reimbursement under the grant)

3)  Farm Land Lease - YOY increase in income is due to 5 parcels going to bid.  Based on bids received, remaining parcels will be renegotiated by city and may increase income further.

Dept. of Revenue Responds to Sales Use & Tax Audit Concerns

Dept of Revenue Commissioner Myron Frans presents info
on tax reform to spark a discussion from local business owners
 and managers.  Also presented was the Dept. of Revenue's response
 to a June meeting where OACCT members shared
concerns regarding Sales Use & Tax Audits.

In June this year, the Owatonna Chamber was the first chamber in the state to host a forum with the MN Dept. of Revenue and Commissioner Frans regarding sales use and tax audits.

Members shared concerns like:

• clarity of the sales and use tax laws and many businesses are surprised with tax burdens they were not previously aware of in spite of diligent efforts to understand and comply with the regulations

• educate first with new tax law; fine after diligent efforts have not been met

• audits consume valuable time, money and energy of our small businesses 

• auditors’ interpretation of the tax laws seem to deviate from the best and generally accepted practices in the tax code

Last week on November 28th, Commissioner Frans and his team were back to share their response to these concerns. Link here for their answers.  Commissioner Frans also lead a tax reform discussion and the overall theme was to simplify tax laws to make it easier for businesses to file.