Senate Dems Pushing Dayton To Call A Special Session
ST. PAUL, Minn. (WCCO)€” -- Minnesota Democrats are continuing to scramble over the continuing fall out from Gov.Mark Dayton's comments that the affordable care act is no longer affordable.
Senate Democrats held a news conference Thursday saying they're hearing complaints from constituents. Now, they're urging Gov. Dayton to call a special legislative session before Election Day to provide some kind of tax break or rebate for those hardest hit by skyrocketing 2017 premiums.
"This is an economic catastrophe in the lives of families," Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk said.
Sen. Bakk says Democrats wants the special session before Election Day, but on Wednesday the Governor said that wouldn't happen.
"I am not going to call a special session before the election," Dayton said. "It would just be mayhem."
The fix proposed by Senate Democrats would involve a tax credit to offset any premiums that exceeded about 10 percent of a person's income. Bakk estimatse the temporary one year fix would cost upwards up $100 million, and that paying for it won't be a problem.
"There is plenty of cash around," Bakk said. "We are sitting on a $1.6 billion budget reserve."
Bakk says he does not agree with Gov. Dayton's statement last week that the Affordable Care Act is no longer affordable. The entire legislature is up for election, and the Republican Senate Minority leader David Hann blasted the Senate Democrats' move as purely political.
"It sounds like a Band-Aid," he said. "It sounds like a politically driven press conference 19 days before the election because they know they are getting hammered by people over this, because they created it."
Political analyst Larry Jacobs agrees.
"The request of Senate Democrats calling for a special session three weeks before the election is the very definition of panic," he said. "They are looking at election day, and they know their majority is at stake."
Republican House Speaker Kurt Daudt released a statement today that said, in part, "House Republicans are open to any and all ideas that will reduce health care costs and fix the crisis Democrats have created on MNsure and the individual market."
Gov. Dayton's office said today he is not commenting on the Senate Democrats request that the special session be held before the election. The governor is holding a news conference Friday morning.
