Vikings or veterans? House Republicans eye stadium fund

In a Minnesota popularity contest, the Vikings and the state's military veterans would each be hard to top. So, what happens when their interests collide? We're about to find out.

Lawmakers are poised to fulfill a goal of veterans groups by authorizing three new 70-bed care centers in greater Minnesota. But a House Republican plan relies on money from a Vikings stadium reserve account with a healthy balance.

Rep. Bob Dettmer, R-Forest Lake, says the veterans homes have been on the drawing board for too long.

"The Vikings have a home. Now it's time to make sure we have homes for our veterans," Dettmer said.

The reserve account is fed by corporate taxes and tax revenue from pulltab gambling, including the electronic pulltab games that were a flop early on but have lately become popular. Projections show the balance climbing above $100 million within the next few years.

Rep. Jim Nash, R-Waconia, said that's far more than needed to guarantee annual payments on the debt taken out to construct the $1.1 billion stadium.

"When is a reserve an appropriate amount to begin not holding onto it for some unforeseen, catastrophic Godzilla-comes-out-of-the-river sort of thing to stomp the stadium?" Nash asked during a hearing Wednesday.

The proposed funding transfer passed last week as part of the House budget bill, but Republican lawmakers returned for a fuller hearing on the stadium account they argue has gotten too bloated.

No one from Gov. Mark Dayton's administration appeared in person. Minnesota Management and Budget Commissioner Myron Frans instead sent a letter, questioning use of the stadium money and whether the veterans home money was adequate to get those built and operated.

"At this time, MMB does not recommend placing a bet on a significantly reduced stadium reserve balance being sufficient in an economic downturn," Frans wrote.

Dayton has said repeatedly he won't allow what he sees as a raid on the stadium fund.

Dayton is pushing back on the notion he's trying to scuttle the veterans homes.

"Because I don't support taking the stadium reserve fund I don't support the new veterans homes? That's just absolutely untruthful," he said.

Dayton has encouraged lawmakers to look elsewhere for the money or borrow for the veterans homes as they would for other state building projects. The homes weren't part of his construction bill.

House State Government Finance Committee Chair Sarah Anderson, R-Plymouth, said she's making good use of "the excess of the excess" in the stadium reserve.

"These are general fund dollars that have been squirreled away and not being used," she said. "And you could go 10 winters, and it's still not being used."

Stadium debt costs are fairly static, about $38 million per year. Soon, the city of Minneapolis will begin paying a chunk of that.

Anderson said the stadium reserve fund is a unique arrangement to start with and would come into play only if other debt payment streams fall short. And she said there would be plenty left even after the transfer.

"I think the governor is missing an opportunity here to make sure that our vets are taken care of, who currently have to travel hundreds of miles to get the end-of-life care they deserve after defending our freedom in this country," Anderson said.

House lawmakers have to win over more than just Dayton. Republican Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka is skeptical of the proposal, too.

Senators would cover the veterans home costs in a just-released public works borrowing plan.

The veterans homes would be built in Bemidji, Montevideo and Preston, Minn. The state probably won't have to foot the entire bill either because the federal government has been paying two-thirds of the cost of similar projects around the country.

Jerry Kyser, chairman of the United Veterans Legislative Council, said his group supports use of the stadium fund. He said in a letter to lawmakers that it makes sense because American Legions and VFWs sell a considerable number of pulltabs, making them a contributor to the stadium account.

Even if the plan goes through, it could be well into the next decade before any of the facilities would open.

The Vikings acknowledge that the money is piling up in the reserve account faster than expected.

Team vice president Lester Bagley said it's premature to assume the trend will continue. He said drawing down the reserve could also get in the way of refinancing bonds to get the stadium paid off sooner.

"Look what Hennepin County did with the Twins deal. They shaved off a number of years and more than $100 million to taxpayers by refinancing the stadium debt," Bagley said. "If we take money out of the stadium reserve fund now, you hamper any effort to do the refinancing later."

Bagley said framing the debate as an attempt to protect the Vikings home at the expense of veterans homes is unfair.

"That's really a false choice," he said. "What we're urging the Legislature and this committee to do is to step back and take a look at other possibilities with the revenues coming in so strong."

MPR News reporter Tim Nelson contributed to this report.