For Immediate Release
February 8, 2024
Contact: Alex Wildfang
651-259-1917
ahwildfang@flaherty-hood.com
CGMC leaders: Focus investment in the basics that will bolster Greater Minnesota communities, refrain from new mandates
Urging lawmakers to address Emergency Medical Services (EMS) delivery challenges, pass a bonding bill, scale back new action, and focus on the essentials among Coalition’s top legislative priorities for 2024
ST. PAUL—As lawmakers return to the Capitol and embark on another legislative session, leaders from the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities (CGMC) are calling on Governor Walz and the Legislature to invest in fundamental programs and priorities that address pressing issues in communities throughout Minnesota.
“The Governor and Legislature gave local governments much to implement and respond to,” said CGMC Executive Director Bradley Peterson during a virtual meeting with statewide media this morning. “Last year’s historic budget surplus prompted much action to take place in the Legislature, with an abundance of new policies making their way from the floor of the Capitol to the front steps of city hall.”
Peterson, who was joined on the call by St. Joseph Mayor and CGMC President Rick Schultz, Albert Lea City Administrator Ian Rigg, and Virginia Mayor Larry Cuffe said for Greater Minnesota, that means a lot of new requirements for cities that are already overburdened by backlogged projects and budgetary constraints.
“Instead of launching into a hoard of new proposals, the 2024 session needs to be focused on supporting those communities and otherwise concentrating on the basics,” Peterson said. “So, pass a bonding bill and stabilize our EMS system—those should be at the top of the to-do list for the upcoming session. New mandates and ‘bold’ ideas can wait.”
Water infrastructure needs major investment
The CGMC is urging the Legislature to pass a capital investment bill (a.k.a. a “bonding bill”) with $299 million for water and wastewater infrastructure, including $39 million in state match for revolving loan funds and $130 million for both water infrastructure grants and the Point Source Implementation Grant (PSIG) program.
“Our local leaders are working hard to improve deteriorating infrastructure and to upgrade facilities to address a growing range of pollutants, but they can’t do it without significant investment from the state,” Peterson said. “Even with last year’s investments, more funding is needed to address the backlog of water and wastewater projects across the state.”
“Cities are willing to pay their fair share, but it is incredibly difficult to pay for these sometimes massive projects without assistance from the state,” he added.
Rigg of Albert Lea explained how for years his city budgeted for anticipated expenses when planning an overhaul of the local wastewater treatment plant, only to encounter unexpected costs related to phosphorous mitigation that have impacted local ratepayers and city coffers.
“Clean water is vital to our citizens, but meeting this [phosphorous] requirement makes our construction project very expensive. Costs have almost doubled to nearly $80 million,” Rigg said. “Without state assistance, our residents and businesses sewer rates will skyrocket. We want to do the right thing, but we really need help from the state to make this construction project happen.”
Emergency Medical Services delivery is unsustainable, needs financial aid
The CGMC has added a new area of focus to their legislative agenda this year: Emergency Medical Services (EMS) delivery and sustainability. As its top legislative priority for 2024, the CGMC is advocating for $120 million in immediate relief to licensed ambulance providers facing incredible financial challenges in an effort to maintain services while broader solutions are developed and to ensure ambulance services remain accessible to all Minnesotans.
“Whether it’s a heart attack, a vehicle crash, or another life-threatening situation, people’s survival relies heavily upon the availability of EMS providers in their area,” said Schultz. “Unfortunately, the challenges to the sustainability of our EMS services are mounting. This already fragile system is at a breaking point.”
Recent data from the Minnesota Emergency Medical Services Review Board (EMSRB) underscores these challenges. Statewide, EMS regions reported a combined $120 million loss when comparing actual expenses to total revenues in 2022. This amount also includes uncompensated labor costs.
“The fee-for-service model of funding EMS is failing, and services and personnel are struggling to maintain operations,” said Peterson. “Low federal and insurance reimbursement rates, an aging workforce, unsustainable volunteer staffing models, and increased operating costs are impacting the ability of local governments and other stakeholders to ensure access to ambulance services.”
“We need a new sustainable source of revenue to alleviate the cost burden on Virginia taxpayers and other communities suffering the same circumstances,” added Cuffe. “It is imperative that the state acts now because this crisis will have life-threatening consequences for our children, families, and communities at large.”
Legislature needs to take a break from major new policies
The CGMC also emphasizes the importance of maintaining cities’ ability to manage local needs without unwarranted intrusion from the Capitol. Local governments are already struggling to keep pace with the priorities of their communities, and ambitious actions by the Legislature will only add needless weight to already heavy city agendas. For this reason, the CGMC is calling upon the Legislature to instead focus their work on helping cities develop and deliver solutions to long-standing and essential issues.
“The more the Legislature proposes solutions that don’t seem to fit the problems as our cities see them and the more that legislators substitute their judgement over the judgements made in council chambers across the state, the more the Legislature risks frustrating and alienating their partners in Greater Minnesota,” said Peterson. “Bottom line is that this year, the Legislature needs to pump the breaks on new policies, allow cities to implement everything that was done last year, and focus on the basics of passing a bonding bill and shoring up our fragile EMS system.”
The CGMC aims to strengthen its relationship with lawmakers during 2024 legislative session, recognizing that while some of the underlying issues may take significant work and time to resolve, their commitment to developing sensible and sustainable policy that addresses the needs of Greater Minnesota remains at the forefront of their advocacy.
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The Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities is a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy organization representing cities outside of the Twin Cities metropolitan area. The Coalition educates legislators about issues important to Greater Minnesota. Visit the CGMC at greatermncities.org and follow us on Twitter @greatermncities.
