Governor Walz’s Budget Proposal: A Last-Minute Fix for a Democrat-Made Crisis

On Thursday, Governor Tim Walz revealed his much-anticipated budget proposal, and if you were expecting a bold, visionary plan for Minnesota’s future, you’d be insanely disappointed. Instead of charting a course for long-term fiscal stability, Walz’s $66 billion proposal looks more like a band-aid attempt to manage a mess of his own making. After two years of unchecked Democrat spending, this new budget is more about managing the fallout than offering real solutions.

There’s a lot more going on here than just a budget number. In 2023, under Democrat leadership, Minnesota passed the largest budget in state history, $70.7 billion. And let’s not kid ourselves, this budget was a spending spree. Democrats threw money at every program they could, regardless of the long-term consequences. Now, Governor Walz is left trying to fix it with his proposed $66 billion budget, a reduction that sounds great on paper but is more about avoiding the looming deficit than it is about sound money management.

Here’s the problem: The state’s financial cushion has shrunk. Minnesota’s projected surplus is already down by over a billion dollars, and without real reforms, the state could be staring down billions in deficits by 2028. The Democrats’ reckless spending spree has set the stage for the very crisis that Walz is now scrambling to address. Don’t let the headlines fool you—this “tightened” budget is little more than a desperate attempt to fix a broken system that Democrats created.

Governor Walz is bragging about a reduction in the state’s sales tax rate, dropping it from 6.5% to 6.425%. Sounds good, right? A tax break for Minnesotans! But here’s the catch: that small tax reduction comes with a massive catch. Walz wants to broaden the sales tax to financial services like legal, accounting, and banking services, which would bring in an extra $205 million by 2026.

This isn’t tax relief; it’s just shifting the tax burden around. It’s a smoke-and-mirrors game designed to look like a win for taxpayers while, in reality, it hits businesses and consumers with a new tax burden. Let’s not forget, this is a tactic straight out of the Democrats' playbook: give with one hand, take with the other, and hope no one notices.

Under the Democrats' watch, Minnesota’s education system has become a money pit, with no real improvement in outcomes to show for it. Education remains the largest chunk of Walz’s budget, but the proposed 3% increase for K-12 schools isn’t even close to enough to meet the demands of inflation and growing class sizes. And that’s not all. Walz wants to slash funding for higher education by 5%, forcing Minnesota’s colleges and universities to tighten their belts even more.

So, what does this all mean for Minnesotans? More taxes, more costs, and fewer services. When Walz claims that his budget is a step in the right direction, he’s talking about keeping the same bloated government programs intact, without any real effort to curb wasteful spending or streamline services.

For families across Minnesota, this could mean higher costs for everyday services. If Walz’s proposal passes, you’ll pay more for legal services, banking, and even brokerage and trust services, all while the state continues to funnel money into inefficient, expanding programs. That $205 million in new taxes won’t be coming from the wealthiest among us; it’ll come from average people who use services like financial planning, legal counsel, or even those navigating the banking system.

At this point, it’s clear that Minnesota needs more than just a tightening of the budget. We need real reform, starting with a hard look at where tax dollars are going. If Democrats are serious about fixing the state’s finances, they need to stop growing government and start cutting the wasteful programs that are bleeding our state dry. As for Walz’s latest proposal? It’s just another political gimmick to avoid facing the real consequences of Democratic overreach.