Crowd gathers at Capitol to rally against taxes

St. Paul (AP) — Nearly 1,000 people rallied at the State Capitol against higher taxes.

Participants in the Minnesota Tax Cut Coalition rally carried signs with slogans like "Born free, taxed to death!" and "We have a spending problem, not a revenue problem."

Many are unhappy with the tax increases approved by the DFL-controlled Legislature this session, including gas and sales tax increases to pay for transportation projects. Six Republicans helped the Democrats override the governor's veto, and protesters called for voting them out of office.

But Matt Entenza, a former DFL legislator who heads a think tank called Minnesota 2020, says Minnesota is not the high tax state the protesters claim. He says Minnesota ranks No. 32 if all taxes, including fees, local property taxes and special assessments are included.