By Sara Strong
With 58 new legislators facing a $5 billion state budget shortfall, Sen. Jim Vickerman addressed state issues at the annual townships meeting Friday.
"I think we can work with Gov. Pawlenty," Vickerman said. "I think we’ll continue to move ahead."
Vickerman has had to be a part of budget cuts in the past, but never to the extent the state will have to cut this year. The state will try to rebound from this budget shortfall for years.
"Everything — and I mean everything — is on the table. … We’ll have to forget politics and just work on it," he said, adding that he is the lone Democrat in the southwest region.
"I couldn’t have been elected here without support from Republicans."
Nursing homes and environmental programs and employees are something Vickerman said he won’t support cutting.
"We lost all our environmentalists in the last election," he said. "… We’re not going to do something to people who need us. We’re going to take care of the poor and those who can’t take care of themselves."
Even though the state is well prepared to make cuts, Vickerman pointed out that there’s only so many numbers to be crunched before the state runs out of options. "If we wiped out all the state agencies, we’d only save $1.8 billion," Vickerman said.
The state shortfall will trickle down to the county and townships.
Vickerman said there’s been some talk of taking counties’ undesignated funds, which Rock County carries very little of.
Undesignated funds are sometimes held in case of unforeseen projects or funding needs that arise.
Much of Rock County’s levy is lightened by state aid: The county collects $3 million locally and spends $10 million. Hennepin County is another example of just how much state aid helps counties. There, its budget is made of 55 percent state aid.
Fire protection
Townships contract with cities for fire protection, and the disparity of cost has been an issue with the townships.
Different sections of Springwater Township, for example, contract at a difference of almost $300.
The city of Luverne also responds to many fires even though it may not be getting paid for its services in every township. The agreement to help with fires is called mutual aid, and all the county departments agree to it.
The townships asked the Rock County Board of Commissioners to look into equalizing the contract charges. The county, short of levying for the costs, doesn’t have much chance of involving itself in fire protection contracts.
If the county did a levy for fire protection, it couldn’t levy only township residents. A county levy would also impact city residents who are already paying for fire protection in city property taxes.
The townships and county plan to ask to be a part of a future Luverne City Council meeting to discuss fire protection.
Other business
Also on the township and county meeting agenda were rural address signs and the environment.
Rural address signs should be in place by June 2003. The individual property signs will be bid for installation. Homeowners will be notified when their new addresses are finalized, and the Post Office will honor both addresses up to a year.
Rock County Land Management Director Eric Hartman reported on the Livestock Friendly designation for the county.
He reminded townships that the Board of Commissioners asked the county Planning and Zoning Board to research what the designation would mean to the county.
Hartman said that the dairy industry in particular is struggling in other states, and being "Livestock Friendly" in the county’s regulations may draw more producers to Rock County.
Vickerman said the designation may come with hidden strings, so he urged the county to research carefully before changing regulations to meet livestock friendly requirements.