Banking Publications

This June 2008 policy brief by Justin Dahlheimer concludes that states could generate hundreds of millions, in some cases billions, of dollars in additional revenue each year by implementing or adjusting depletion tax policies. The report illustrates how current depletion tax policies, in many cases, fail to account for the full value of the natural resources, depriving state and local governments of additional revenue that could be useful in current and future fiscal years. More

This November 2007 report by David Morris and Ann Robertson evaluates the evaluates that issue by analyzing the impact of the proposed $1.5 billion tax shift legislation, the Economic Efficiency and Pollution Reduction Act (EEPRA) on Minnesota's most energy-intensive business sectors and estimating the potential for those sectors to offset any increased tax burden through cost- effective efficiency improvements.

Under EEPRA, energy-intensive businesses would pay higher net taxes while energy-efficient businesses would pay lower net taxes. While this is an intended outcome of the tax shift, businesses in Minnesota are concerned that the tax shift could impose a competitive burden on certain sectors.  More

Feature Stories: Rogue Agencies Gut State Banking Laws, On the Cutting Edge, Feds Swat State Support for Medical Marijuana, Mapping the Internet

Place Rules: Missouri's meatpackng law stands. Maine Rx Program survives suit. Wisconsin draws attention to unfair gas pricing. California allows municipal control of electricity. Oregon preempts living wage laws. More

Feature Stories: Seeding Power: The Other Problem with GM Crops, Low Power Suffers a Low Blow, Jack and the Giant School, and Think Locally Tax Globally.

Place Rules: Iowa's ATM law endangered, Large trucks banned from local Jersey roads, State meat inspection programs revived, and Missouri cooperative incentives. More

Feature Stories: Deep Pockets or Open Hans: Credit Unions Struggle Over Contents, Hogging the Market, Got (Local) Milk, and A Case of the Good Stuff.

Place Rules: Ohioans allow local control of power, Congress considers net-metering standards, Troy vetoes GM tax breaks, France fights unfair produce prices, Small Roquefort town imposes Coca-Cola tax, South Dakota's Amendment E bans corporate ownership of livestock. More

This policy brief by David Morris and John Bailey from November 1998, looked at potential changes to utility property taxes in Minnesota. The state was re-examining the utility tax structure in light of the restructuring of electricity occurring throughout the country.  The rationale for this re-examination is that if Minnesota were to deregulate its electricity sector, customers would be able to buy electricity from any supplier.  If taxes were imposed on in-state power plants but not on out-of-state suppliers, it would result in a competitive disadvantage to in-state generators. More

This Novemeber 1998 report by David Morris and John Bailey examines the impact of a proposed $1.5 billion ecological tax shift proposal on Minnesota's agricultural sector. Overall, the net impact is beneficial for Minnesota farmers that are growing crops. On a statewide level, the carbon tax raises costs to farmers by about $59.1 million while the property tax reduction lowers costs by $92 million. The benefit varies by crop and by farm size. Soybean farmers do better than corn farmers, large farmers do better than small farmers. More

This February 1997 report by David Morris, Alyson Schiller, and John Bailey examines the impact of the proposed Economic Efficiency and Pollution Reduction Act (EEPRA). The bill's introduction in the 1996 Minnesota State Legislature prompted a discussion about its impact on Minnesota businesses. This report addresses this question. It does so by assessing the net impact of several types of tax shifts on 23 Minnesota businesses, ranging from neighborhood coffee shops to equipment manufacturers and farmers and paper mills.

EEPRA imposes a tax on all fossil fuels and nuclear energy and reduces taxes on property and work. The tax in the form of a $50 fee per ton of carbon burned would raise $1.5 billion a year. More

On February 15, 1996, ILSR's Vice President David Morris testified before legislative committee hearing in Minnesota on a 1996 bill, H.F. 3063, the Economic Efficiency and Pollution Reduction Act of 1996 (EEPRA). More

A factsheet related to the proposed Energy Efficiency and Pollution Reduction Act (EEPRA) in Minnesota during 1996-1997. EEPRA is a revenue neutral measure that proposes to increase energy taxes by $1.5 billion and to reduce existing taxes on labor or income by an equal amount. More