This past November, Minnesotans made the historic decision to approve a constitutional amendment, called the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment, that will create dedicated funding for conservation and culture.  On behalf of the over 1,600 arts and cultural organizations in the state, the Minnesota Opera would like to thank everyone who helped to make this amendment a reality.

Just like our lakes and great outdoors, Minnesota's cultural resources are a vital part of our quality of life and tourism industry. Passage of this amendment means better access to cultural opportunities statewide for ourselves and our children. While the arts are a very tiny part of the state budget (less than 3/100ths of 1% of the state budget), they are slashed almost every time the state has a budget deficit. This amendment creates a stable, long term and protected source of funding for the arts, as well as guaranteed funding to preserve the drinking water sources, wildlife habitats, wetlands and forests that make Minnesota such a great place to live.

The Clean Water, Land and Legacy amendment calls for a .375% sales tax increase for the next 25 years, which will create a dedicated funding stream for the arts, as well as land and water conservation. This amendment will cost less than 15 cents a day – about $1 a week – for the average Minnesota family, an investment that will provide an estimated $300 million a year for 25 years. This fund will be used to protect our drinking water sources, enhance and restore our wetlands, prairies, forests, and fish, game, and wildlife habitat, preserve our arts and cultural heritage, support our parks and trails, and to protect, enhance, and restore our lakes, rivers, streams and groundwater so we can pass the Minnesota we love onto future generations.  Specifically, the language of the amendment allocates funding among four purposes as follows: 33% for water quality, 33% for wildlife habitat, 19.75% for arts and cultural resources, and 14.25% for parks and trails.

Even with this modest increase, the Twin Cities will still have one of the lowest sales-tax rates among metro areas of its size; yet the fund that this creates will go a long way towards protecting Minnesota's natural and cultural resources, and allowing us to pass down our great quality of life to for future generations. Thank you, Minnesota.