Kurt Zellers, CEO of the Minnesota Business Partnership, released the following statement regarding the state economic forecast:
Today’s forecast confirms what businesses all over Minnesota have been experiencing: a slowing economy and fiscal headwinds.
While the current budget shows a $2.5 billion surplus, the projected deficit for 2028 and 2029 has grown to nearly $3 billion, more than double the $1.1 billion reported at the end of June’s special session. Rising health care costs and sluggish economic growth are outpacing revenues, but not all states are experiencing a similar downturn. There is a different way.
The Minnesota Business Partnership urges lawmakers to approach the upcoming legislative session with the obvious fiscal discipline needed to prevent the deficit from getting worse, and rather than wait for the bad news to get worse, we suggest a different course: grow the pie for all Minnesotans.
We suggest all legislators focus on making our state more competitive. Look at the states that continue to grow their budgets, attract new companies, and foster growth from within. Then learn from their successes!
Blame is an easy game to play; it takes little effort and there is always plenty to go around. The hard work – the necessary, legacy building work – is to build a business ecosystem that will help all Minnesotans share in a growing pie. The MBP, our member companies, and their employees will work with all those willing to join us in this critical mission.