Getting Minnesota Back to Work

- Under the Governor's leadership Minnesota continues to outpace the national economic recovery. Minnesota's unemployment rate is 5.9 percent, compared to 8.6 percent for the rest of the country. There are 53,000 more Minnesotans at work now, compared to the bottom of the recession.

- Governor Dayton worked to pass a $500 million bonding bill, putting thousands of Minnesotans back to work improving bridges, roads and infrastructure.

- Governor Dayton took action to help small businesses grow and add jobs in Minnesota, providing $100 million in new capital for expansion and streamlining Minnesota's overly bureaucratic permitting and licensing process.

- After traveling the state and convening a statewide summit to gather Minnesotans' best ideas for job creation, Governor Dayton is developing a long-term job growth plan that involves increasing exports, improving workforce development and training and rebuilding our state's infrastructure.

Changing the Way the State Does Business

- The Dayton administration saved $500 million in taxpayer money through competitive bidding for state health care contracts.

- Governor Dayton is committed to fundamental tax reform, simplifying the tax code and eliminating special interest deductions that allow the rich to avoid paying their fair share in taxes.

- Under the Dayton Administration's leadership, Minnesota won a federal Race to the Top Grant, which will bring millions of dollars in new funding to our state for early childhood learning.

- Governor Dayton's executive order to streamline Minnesota's permitting process resulted in 96 percent of permits for job creating projects now being issued within 150 days. Minnesota agencies have also made thousands of permits and licenses obtainable online, making it easier to do business in our state.

- Governor Dayton enrolled the state into an expansion of Medicaid that provided 95,000 Minnesotans with health care and protected more than 20,000 jobs in the health care industry.

A Fair and Balanced Budget Proposal

- The Republican legislature chose to shut down government in support of an irresponsible budget solution. Had the Republican legislature adopted Governor Dayton's budget, we would have been able to avoid a government shutdown and balance the budget while restoring our budget reserves, avoiding property tax increases, and without additional borrowing from our schools.

- Governor Dayton proposed a state budget that would have protected seniors, homeowners and small business owners from rising property taxes by restoring tax fairness and asking the richest Minnesotans to pay the same amount in income taxes that the middle class does.