Mr. Dahle Goes to St. Paul

A recent Letter to the Editor in the Northfield News claimed that Kevin Dahle promised to “vote yes for every tax.”  The writer claimed I made that comment during my Senate campaign at the public forum held at the Grand this past December.  Let me provide the real context of my public statements that night.

The discussion centered around education.  If a school board has come to the very difficult decision to turn to the voters to continue to provide a quality education to its citizens through a levy referendum, each of us must decide the costs and benefits of such a request.  While the federal and state governments continue to shortchange our schools, as a teacher and a father of three young children, I will never compromise my children’s  future.  If a levy is needed to ensure my children receive a quality education, I will vote yes every time.

I will continue to work to improve the education funding formula so school districts will not have to turn to its citizens every three or four years for adequate school funding.  Property taxes are stretched to the limit and the state must keep its Constitutional obligation to properly fund our schools.  An investment in our children and the future of Minnesota should never be compromised.