Steve Brandt - Minneapolis BET President

01/07/2026

I second the mayor's demand that ICE leave Minneapolis. It's long past time. The federal agents responsible for this morning's tragic and needless death need to be held accountable. Our righteous protests need to stay nonviolent. Let's avoid any actions that damage our grieving city. Don't play into Trump's hands.

The mayor called for calm after a fatal shooting by an immigration agent in south Minneapolis. ICE said the agent acted defensively.

11/23/2024

Yes, it’s painful when Mpls taxes go up but we’ve had less pain than many peer cities:

A new study by Redfin says Minneapolis property taxes haven’t increased as much as most metro areas since the pandemic. It’s about in the middle of the 50 largest cities.

08/23/2024

Hey Minneapolis. Just want to alert you to your annual chance to comment on the proposed city property tax increase.

The Board of Estimate and Taxation will take public comment on the mayor's proposed property tax increase. That session is scheduled for Sept. 11 at 5 p.m. The BET meets in room 350 of the Public Safety Center, 250 S. 4th Street, which is the temporary home of public meetings while the Council chamber in City Hall gets a mechanicals renovation.

Mayor Jacob Frey has proposed an 8.1 percent increase in the total amount of property tax collected. Because homestead property makes up a bigger share of the tax base next year, that would translate to a 10.9 percent increase on the citywide median value home of $329,000. But due to uneven changes in home value, that would range from a 7.29 percent increase for the median Ward 10 home to a 15.6 percent jump for the median Ward 4 home. All figures are before any property tax credits for which a homeowner may qualify.

The median value commercial-industrial property of $425,000 would see a 19.6 percent increase. The median value apartment property worth $790,500 would see a 6.6 percent increase, which likely would be passed on toe renters.

The Board of Estimate and Taxation doesn't decide how much to spend. That's the Council's job. Rather the Board sets the maximum by which the levy can increase next year; the Council can feel free to raise taxes by a lesser amount.

If you have strong feelings about the proposed levy, please speak up.

05/24/2024

I’d like to check in with followers of this page on two developments aimed at making the Board of Estimate a more effective player in city finances.

First, the Board last night unanimously approved my resolution asking the Charter Commission to study and to place on the 2025 ballot a referendum on three charter changes.

One is returning the board to seven members so we regain the tiebreaking vote we lost when the seat held by the Library Board was eliminated with that board’s demise. The second is to fill that seat with a directly elected member of the public, bringing the number of such elected members to three. This strengthens the oversight role of citizens in city finances. The third would change the name to the Board of Debt and Taxes to better reflect the Board’s duties.

The Board also asked the City Council
to make a similar request to the Charter Commission. Council President Payne has committed to putting that on the Council’s agenda.

The other major development is the Board’s previous authorization of my proposal to return to hiring our own executive secretary. The Board was served by a full time executive secretary for a century before a previous Board took the position half time in 2019, which was not sustainable. A search will begin soon once we determine the number of hours the position warrants. I’m hoping that it will be substantially more than half time so that needed research projects can be accomplished. This will have no immediate budget impact because the Board still is spending down its budget balance from previous years.

I’ll keep you posted on how the Charter Commission proceeds.

Steve

05/24/2024

I’ve been speaking out more recently on matters affecting your property tax.

One Star Tribune commentary linked below looks at the need for financial discipline for the 2025 budget, given what’s happening with the city’s tax base.

The other argues that continuing litigation over the 2040 comp plan is hurting what has been the most robust area of growth for our tax base—apartment construction. Fortunately, the Legislature stepped it to clarify that the higher densities in the comp plan don’t warrant further environmental review.

https://m.startribune.com/the-tale-of-two-cities-assessed-property-values/600361730/?_gl=1*sxmmjk*_ga*MjAwNjczMTE0MC4xNzE2Mjk3Mjky*_ga_SG3Y2YJFRQ*MTcxNjQ5MDk1MC4zLjEuMTcxNjQ5MTAyNi4wLjAuMA..

https://m.startribune.com/dont-risk-the-minneapolis-tax-base-by-litigating-the-2040-plan/600365941/?_gl=1*ceu7j8*_ga*MjAwNjczMTE0MC4xNzE2Mjk3Mjky*_ga_SG3Y2YJFRQ*MTcxNjQ5MDk1MC4zLjEuMTcxNjQ5MTcwMi4wLjAuMA..

Why Minneapolis appears less healthy than St. Paul, and what lies ahead.

08/11/2023

Very pleased to be able to relay that Minneapolis creditworthiness now is rated at a sterling AAA by both rating agencies that evaluated the city's credit. Fitch announced an upgrade from AA+ to AAA and S+P Global Credit maintained its AAA rating.

Read more at:

Bond rating agencies S&P Global and Fitch Ratings have assigned the highest credit rating possible to the City of Minneapolis, reflecting strong confidence in the City’s financial health.

03/17/2023

I'm glad to see that the long-neglected issue of parkway paving is getting needed attention, and I'm glad that reporter Susan Du noted that the Minneapolis Capital Long-Range Improvement Committee has been harping on this issue of increased funding for years. As a CLIC member, I helped to craft its initial comment in 2019 to city leaders that parkway maintenance funding isn't keeping up with the need. CLIC has repeated this stance annually but it has fallen on deaf ears at City Hall, which controls the purse strings. As a BET member, we don't get to vote on individual capital projects but I strongly support any bonding that will give our parkways the needed funding and condition improvement. We need to take care of our existing infrastructure before we add more.

At the current rate of $750,000 a year, the full parkway system will be undrivable in 15 years, according to the Park Board.