ST.PAUL, Minn. — Governor Tim Walz, who had toyed with $1,000 tax rebate checks to citizens, now says he’s prepared to go lower. A year ago he proposed $350 rebates, which quickly came to be called Walz Checks, but the idea was lost in the 2022 budget stalemate with Republicans in the Legislature. Walz rekindled the idea this December and said he wanted to go higher – perhaps $1,000 for individual filers and $2,00 for joint filers. Those sums received only mild support from fellow Democrats, even though the state budget surplus has swelled almost double to $17 billion in recent months. How much is Walz willing come down. In an interview with the Associated Press he said he wasn’t yet sure. The governor, however, will need to settle on a sum before his annual budget recommendations to the Legislature in two weeks.
Verbatim
Walz: “People are feeling inflation, even though it may be cooling a little bit. I think there’s a sense out there amongst Minnesotans, whether they’re conservative or liberal, that a little bit of the surplus could really help.”