Fact Check: State of the State

Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s 2007 Minnesota State of the State was long on rhetoric and short on specifics, but he did advance a few hard numbers that can be checked.

TAXES:

Under the November budget forecast, state spending will go up about $1 billion automatically because we’ll be serving more people under our entitlement programs. Beyond that, an additional $2 billion is available for use. That means the state can use about $3 billion in the upcoming budget cycle. That would be about a 10 percent increase over the current budget. Ten percent growth is more than most Minnesotans will see in their paychecks and it should be enough growth for their government, too.

This statement is true, but misleading. Ten percent growth in the government may seem like a lot, but by historical standards, it’s very low.  Since 1960, the growth in all funds from biennium to biennium has been less than 10  percent only twice