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Fiscal Focus

Fiscal Focus is our bimonthly publication providing news, analysis, and commentary on tax and spending topics in the headlines.


June 02, 2015

May / June 2015

The Tax Bill That Wasn’t

No omnibus tax bill this session is a source of consternation and frustration for many. But there is a silver lining.

When You Wish Upon a Star, Taxes Matter

A new research study concludes state taxes affect the location decisions of high-end scientific talent. It also shows Minnesota has a lot at stake – and potentially a lot to lose.

A Math Problem Called Education Finance

The balking and resistance to universal pre-K is symptomatic of a larger issue: the failure of state education aid to keep up with the rising costs of school district collective bargaining agreements.

Minnesota Findings from the 2014 50-State Property Tax Comparison Study

A new MCFE Issue Brief summarizes and highlights key Minnesota-related findings from our national property tax benchmarking study

April 14, 2015

March / April 2015

Taking Inventory of the 2015 Tax Bills

A look at some of the potential fodder comprising forthcoming omnibus tax bills

The Devil’s Dictionary Guide to the End of Session

Some alternative definitions of words you will hear frequently over the next six weeks

This Year in Pensions: Five Things We Learned

Rip roaring investment markets and new pension accounting standards changed a few things on the surface. Underneath, sustainability pursuits continue to be built on a foundation of sand.

 What Public Pensions and Geology Have in Common

When science fails to explain evidence, the science needs to adapt

February 03, 2015

January/February 2015

Roads Out of Perdition

A look at Minnesota highway finance past and present – and the policy considerations surrounding different revenue options being proposed.

Why is Minnesota Highway Construction Inflation So Much Higher than the Nation’s?

The strikingly large difference between state and national measures of highway cost inflation suggests that the source of, reasons for, and measurement of cost inflation must be part of the larger transportation finance debate.

Minnesota Residency: The “Domicile Swamp”

Guest columnist Gina Ceola, Director, PWC Minneapolis, provides a practitioner’s perspective on the complexity of Minnesota’s residency testing and why Minnesota’s residency laws need greater clarity and simplification.