IOUs to school children and painful cuts to the vulnerable are no surplus

Minnesota AFL-CIO President Shar Knutson issued the following statement in response to state officials’ announcement of a $323 million ‘surplus’ in the current state budget:

“This budget figure is not a real surplus.

“There is still a deficit in the billions in IOUs written to Minnesota school children, the painful cuts made to critical services to the most vulnerable Minnesotans, and the tens of thousands of Minnesotans still looking for work.

“These IOUs and cuts came all while big corporations continued to use tax loopholes to avoid paying their fair share.

“Lawmakers should use the short time remaining in this session to make good on our previous commitments to school children and vulnerable Minnesotans.

“They should use the time to help create the jobs we need to make our economic recovery complete.

“Finally, they should ensure that big corporations start playing by the rules.”