This years look at Governor Dayton’s proposed budget Conservation Minnesota found that the shifts and gimmicks of the past Governor’s budgets are absent. When the organization issued its first report in 2002, support for conservation was on a steady decline, reaching just 1% of general fund spending by 2008. Since then, shifts and cuts have decreased that percent by nearly one third. The governor’s current budget proposal stabilizes funding and does not rely on raids, shifts or budgeting gimmicks.
“We are encouraged by the fact that the Governor stuck to his word, delivering a straightforward budget proposal,” said Paul Austin, Executive Director of Conservation Minnesota. “There are cuts to conservation and areas that require increased funding, but the Governor’s proposal stops the bleeding and starts an honest discussion about how to protect Minnesota’s lakes, lands, and way of life. ”
