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Now that the Legislature is back in session again, chances are good you could see another stimulus check in your account soon, courtesy of the state of Minnesota.

The pieces are now in place in Minnesota thanks to the results of last fall's election

During the 2022 midterm election last fall, Minnesota's Democrat Farm Labor Party (DFL) scored the elusive trifecta: DFL Gov. Tim Walz won reelection, the DFL retained its majority in the Minnesota House and the DFL also won a majority in the Minnesota Senate.

That's something that hasn't happened in nearly a decade here in the Land of 10,000 Lakes. You have to go back to 2013 to find the last time just one party (again the DFL) controlled all three parts of Minnesota's state legislature. But could it mean an extra thousand dollar check for most Minnesotans?

Why there's a better chance at seeing another $1,000 check this year in Minnesota

One feature of a single party controlling all three facets of Minnesota's state legislature is that it's much easier for policies and bills to be enacted into law, seeing as the opposing party (Minnesota's Republican Party in this case) doesn't have enough votes to block the proposal, or to force the DLF to compromise to get bills passed.

Whether that's a good thing or not depends on your own political beliefs, but it might mean that Minnesotans could soon see another stimulus check in our accounts. It's all part of a plan Gov. Tim Walz announced last year, after the 2022 Legislature adjourned without reaching an agreement on how to spend Minnesota's massive budget surplus.

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The state of Minnesota has been collecting way more of our tax dollars than projected, and the state budget office estimated back in December that the surplus is approaching 17.6 billion dollars. That amount is still sitting there, waiting for the DFL-controlled Legislature to divvy it up. And the Legislature officially kicked off its 2023 session on Tuesday, January 3rd, so lawmakers could act soon to send some of that surplus back our way.

Last summer, Gov. Walz proposed one way to spend at least a part of that money: by sending each Minnesotan a thousand-dollar stimulus check ('Walz Check' as it was called in his proposal when it was announced last June.) Of course, Republicans in the Minnesota Senate didn't agree to that proposal, but now that the DFL controls the Senate-- and the fact that the Legislature is now back in session-- might have changed things.

Getting another $1,000 check isn't a done deal just yet in Minnesota, though

It does look more likely than it did last fall. Before the state came out with its latest budget surplus estimate, other DLF leaders said there might not be complete agreement even within their own party to pass a provision approving those checks.

However, after word that the surplus had ballooned to over $17 billion, Gov. Walz told the Minnesota Post in December that he's still in favor of sending out those rebate checks:

"If you want to reduce costs for the short-term and make an impact on families who really need it, it’s one of the most effective ways," Walz noted in the story.  "We’ll propose it again," he said.

So, WILL we get an extra $1,000 check this year? Well, chances are better than they were last year. But I guess only time will tell. One person who perhaps doesn't *need* that extra money is Gophers head football coach PJ Fleck. He sold his vacation home on Lake Minnetonka last year for just under $2.5 million. Keep scrolling to see the pics!

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Minnesota Gophers Coach PJ Fleck's Former Home on Lake Minnetonka

PJ Fleck recently sold his lake on Lake Minnetonka in Mound for just over 2.4 million dollars. These pictures show a beautiful home with stunning views of the lake.

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