If you live in Minnesota, you now have the latest edition of an essential tool in evaluating your state legislators on matters of tax and budget issues. The Taxpayers League of Minnesota, which has been fighting to reduce and reform taxation, eliminate government waste, and improve government efficiency for years, has just released its new 2010 Legislative Scorecard. Similar to NTU's Scorecard for Congress, the Legislative Scorecard assigns a letter grade for each member of the Minnesota House of Representatives and the State Senate based on how they vote on important budget and tax legislation. As Taxpayers League President Phil Krinkie writes in the Scorecard's summary, "[the purpose of the scorecard] is to give citizens an overview of the legislative session by selecting what we believe are the key votes on fiscal and budget issues. The main objective is to give citizens a resource by which to hold their elected representatives accountable."
Among some of the highlights in the Legislative Scorecard, Representatives Bruce Anderson, Mark Buesgens, and Steve Drazowski, and State Senator Ray Vandeveer each received 100% score, which makes them the "2010 Best Friends of the Taxpayer." Additionally, nine others, including four State Senators, earned a score of 90% or better and, with it, the designation of "2010 Friends of the Taxpayer." These scores are noteworthy when you consider that the Minnesota State Legislature attempted to enact a $1.1 billion package of construction projects and a $450 million income tax increase, efforts that were slimmed down or vetoed by Governor Tim Pawlenty.
Scorecards like what the Taxpayers League produces are very helpful to a taxpayer who wants to evaluate an elected official because they boil down the many votes into a single, easy to understand letter grade. In his summary, Phil concludes, "Each year taxpayers fund state government with billions of their hard earned wages. The major responsibility of the legislature is to spend these resources for the maximum benefit of the public." This responsibility includes spending the money wisely. With the Taxpayers League Legislative Scorecard, Minnesotans can judge how well their legislators are carrying out this responsibility.