Senate Republicans announce priorities for 2022 legislative session

Wednesday, Senate Republicans announced their priorities for the upcoming legislative session.

A major focus of this upcoming session will be what to do with the state’s projected $7.7 billion budget surplus.

RELATED: Record $7.7B surplus projected in latest Minnesota budget forecast

During the meeting Wednesday, Senate lawmakers touched on public safety, education and taxes as priority items they said they plan to address.

“Priority number one: Public safety,” Republican Senate Majority Leader Jeremy Miller said during the meeting Wednesday. “We will put forward proposals to provide funding for more police officers because we know more cops result in less crime. We will put forward proposals to hold violent criminals accountable for their actions.”

Miller went on to suggest, “our police officer retention will include bonuses, as well as pension reforms. Our recruitment ideas will include college scholarships for folks who would like to enter law enforcement as a profession.”

Miller said education will be another priority for Senate Republicans during the upcoming session.

“Every discussion related to education will be about what’s best for the kids, what can we do to best benefit the kids,” Miller claimed. “At a time when students are falling behind, we think it’s more important than ever for parents to be involved in their children’s education and engaged with educators to ensure that our kids are getting the top-quality education that they deserve.”

Meanwhile, Senate Tax Committee Vice-Chair Julia Coleman said she has pitched a series of tax cuts she claims are targeted to working Minnesotans, families and seniors. 

“Minnesotans deserve a break, and Senate Republicans will continue the fight for meaningful and permanent tax relief,” Coleman claimed in a statement.

View the full announcement below.