Politics & Government

Sen. Lillie Looks to Trim Government Agencies

He has authored a bill that would look at reducing the number of commissioners in state departments.

Sen. Ted Lillie has been speaking with several Minnesota business owners about the recent trend of a more "horizontal" management structure. He’d like to see the same thing in state government.

The Republican, who represents Woodbury in the Senate, has authored a bill (SF739) that would reduce the number of deputy and assistant commissioners in state agencies. “This state government is huge,” he said.

He noted a recent Wall Street Journal article that reported there are twice as many government workers (22.5 million) as there are in manufacturing in the U.S. That ratio was reversed in 1950, Lillie said.

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“I think that shocks most people—that there are that many people working at a government level,” he said.

Meanwhile, he is working a measure that would add funds to state coffers. The bill (SF755) targets individuals and businesses that owe state taxes. The legislation would find those receiving federal funds—through taxes or other means—and owe Minnesota money, and recoup the funds owed to the state. Similar measures have been on the books in other states since 2007, Lillie said, adding that there would be a review process and people would have the opportunity to question the collection process.

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“It’s very fair,” he said.

Another piece of legislation (SF1011) he’s working on would make it more beneficial for companies to house corporate jets in Minnesota. The state charges an annual $200,000 fee for jets, compared to $15,000 in Wisconsin, Lillie said. The state also currently charges based on the value of the plane; the bill would make it based on the jet’s weight. The offset in revenues would be recovered through increased taxes on jet fuel, Lillie said.

He has also been working to pass the Senate version of , of which he is a co-author.

Lift Bridge

Lillie, a freshman legislator, has jumped headlong into the Stillwater bridge saga. Plans for a new four-lane bridge spanning the St. Croix River have been in the works for decades and the project has run into numerous snags and pitfalls along the way.

He’s been working with a coalition of stakeholders on both sides of the river to find a way to get a new bridge built. Lillie said he supports the idea of an exclusion to the federal Wild and Scenic Rivers Act that would allow a bridge to be built.

“We all love our river,” Lillie said. “But at the same time the bridge is near the Xcel facility, there’s a water treatment plant nearby—it’s not the most pristine stretch of the river anyway.”

There are also safety concerns with the Lift Bridge, Lillie said, also noting the affects of traffic on downtown Stillwater business owners.


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