Minnesota Public Radio Re-Launches Award-Winning Budget Balancer for 2007

Web feature challenges participants to put their priorities to the test

"Do your values add up?"

March 8, 2007

(St. Paul, Minn.) March 7, 2007—Balancing the state budget is much more than an accounting exercise. It's a high stakes and difficult process of testing convictions and values amid political compromise and debate.

It's easy enough to have strong opinions about where the state should spend its money. But can those convictions survive a series of difficult tradeoffs?

Minnesota Public Radio is challenging citizens to put their values to the test by trying their hand at the 2007 Budget Balancer.

Participants will be able express their values by choosing to increase or cut spending on a wide range of state-funded programs and sending their balanced budget to the governor, their elected representatives and the MPR Newsroom. They will also see how their budget stacks up against other participants' budgets.

"Developing a budget is about setting priorities and making the most of taxpayer dollars," Commissioner of Finance Tom Hanson said. "The budget balancer is a great way to let people decide how to manage a $34 billion budget and demonstrates how the decisions made affect people's lives and our state's future."

Along the way, the Budget Balancer will give participants professionally researched messages informing them of the potential consequences of their actions. This year, former Pioneer Press political reporter Pat Sweeney researched and reported the options and subsequent repercussions within the Budget Balancer.

"The state budget seems complex, but at heart, it's pretty simple. It's about deciding what matters to us, and putting our money there. Every person, every family and every business has to do that with their own budgets," said Michael Skoler, executive director for Minnesota Public Radio's Center for Innovation in Journalism. "We all know how to make choices. The MPR Budget Balancer gives us the information we need to design a budget and then let our legislators know what we want."

This is the third Budget Balancer from Minnesota Public Radio's News Service.

As in past years, the budgets and insights participants share will inform Minnesota Public Radio News' ongoing reporting of the budget process and its effects on Minnesotans.

How MPR's Budget Balancer works:

Go to www.mpr.org/budgetbalancer.

• Participants start by entering their first and last name, zip code and e-mail address. This information will enable participants to send their balanced budgets to their elected representatives, the MPR Newsroom and their friends and family.
• Participants then tackle the budget one area at a time—from education to the environment, health care to sales taxes.
• They will be able to navigate through nearly 100 options for deciding the state's spending priorities.
• Every choice participants make will bring up a message showing potential consequences.
• The Budget Balancer will register each choice and show a running tally of the deficit or surplus.
• Upon submitting their balanced budget, participants will see a point-by-point comparison with the Governor's proposed budget, and a comparison to other participants' budgets.
• They will then be able to express their values for the state by sharing their priorities and how those relate to their personal experience.
• This information, and the budget choices they make, will help legislators and the governor understand their priorities. It will also help guide Minnesota Public Radio News coverage of the state budget and its effects on Minnesotans. Participants will then be encouraged to send their budget to the governor, their elected representatives and the MPR newsroom.

Keep up with the 2007 legislature with all of MPR's online political tools:

• Votetracker, which makes it possible to follow key legislation, read background, see MPR-related stories and find out how legislators voted on the issues.
• Minnesota Fantasy Legislature, MPR's popular Web program with MFL Commissioner Bob Collins where participants draft six legislators on their "teams" and earn points for bills passed.
• Polinaut,^™ a regularly updated, non-partisan political blog featuring a "daily digest" of media coverage and contributions by MPR political correspondents Mike Mulcahy and Tom Scheck.
• Policast,^™ downloadable MP3 files which bring highlights of regional political coverage, hosted by MPR's political editor Mike Mulcahy.

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Press Contacts:
Jen Haugh
Minnesota Public Radio
651-290-1369
cschmitt@mpr.org