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Candidates blame taxes, mandates and regulation as businesses leave Minnesota
Summary
At the forum, candidates cited high personal and corporate taxes, paid-family-leave mandates and regulatory burdens (including state housing agency practices) as drivers of business departures and proposed tax relief, regulatory rollbacks and targeted supports.
Forum candidates described economic challenges facing Minnesota businesses and proposed policy changes they say would make the state more competitive.
Several candidates blamed high taxes and what they described as one-size-fits-all mandates for business departures. Candidate (Speaker 10) pointed to taxes and regulatory friction, saying some large affordable housing developers have stopped doing business in Minnesota. Candidate (Speaker 12) singled out the 2023 paid-family-medical-leave mandate, citing a large initial number of applicants and arguing that the program’s rollout and perceived fraud concerns have hurt recruiting and retention.
Proposed remedies included tax relief (raising the standard deduction, property-tax reforms and tax relief for seniors), rolling back regulations that candidates said drive out employers, and targeted workforce and vocational initiatives to keep and attract firms.
What happens next: candidates said they would make business climate a top priority if elected and would press for statutory and regulatory changes.
