Accessibility menu
State Representative Tim Mahoney
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-4277
For more information contact: Matt Swenson 651-297-8406
NEWS COLUMN
A NEW BEGINNING IN MINNESOTA
Seventy-six years ago this month, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt took the oath of office and offered Americans a new vision for progress and prosperity in our country. Offering swift action for millions of struggling citizens at the height of the Great Depression, Roosevelt led the country through an unprecedented restructuring of government to meet the crisis and emerge from recession stronger than ever before.
Last week I took the oath of office to serve our community for a sixth term in the Minnesota House of Representatives. It is an honor to serve as your state representative, and I take the responsibilities that come with this office very seriously - particularly in these uncertain economic times. Like Roosevelt in the ‘30s, this year my colleagues and I are charged with the difficult task of dramatically rethinking how government can meet a serious, generational economic crisis with confidence, a commitment to responsible reform, and the vision to enact forward-thinking policies capable of securing long-term prosperity in our state. I pledge to devote my best efforts to fulfill that responsibility, no matter the obstacles that lie ahead.
The economic recession we are experiencing in Minnesota is no Great Depression, but its impacts are comparable in the lives of hundreds of thousands of unemployed citizens in our state. State Economist Tom Stinson reported last month we are facing the longest and deepest economic recession since 1942. Nearly 200,000 Minnesotans are unemployed. Thirty thousand jobs have been lost in our state over the last twelve months and there is no sign of improvement in the near future. In fact, 77,000 more Minnesotans are expected to lose their jobs in 2009 alone. Stinson’s predictions also pointed to a record $4.8 billion state budget deficit brought on by this difficult and worsening economic situation. These two factors combined Stinson said, has cast Minnesota lawmakers into “uncharted waters."
Facing an unprecedented budget deficit and a dismal economic outlook, this is no time for business as usual in state government; and defeatism in the face of economic crisis offers no helpful solutions. As Roosevelt said in his 1933 Inaugural Address, “When there is no vision, the people perish.” This still applies today. So it is imperative now that we as Minnesotans have hope, pursue change, and together develop a new, creative vision for a brighter economic future.
The health of our economic future will hinge directly on the foresight of lawmakers to bring new jobs and industries to our state. As chair of the House Bioscience and Workforce Development Policy and Oversight Division, I am in a unique position to contribute constructively to that broader economic solution. By working strategically to bring the next generation of high-tech industries to our state, and putting programs in place to train new workers or retrain existing workers, we can provide thousands of good-paying jobs for highly-skilled, hard working Minnesotans.
The kind of sweeping economic reform our state needs will require more than the governor’s typically shortsighted approaches. Relying on broken policies and outdated programs simply won’t get the job done. Instead, Minnesota lawmakers have to broadly explore the best ways to strengthen the long-term economic competitiveness of our state through innovative investment in human capital and economic infrastructure to draw new business to our state. We need to draw on new ideas to create a more competitive and prosperous state economy that will sustain positive economic growth, and provide job security and healthy wages for Minnesota workers.
While the economic outlook for our state is uncertain, I remain confident in our ability as Minnesotans to do more than weather this economic storm. Like Roosevelt, I think we can re-imagine the role of government, and rebuild our struggling economy to emerge from this recession stronger than ever before. But that task will require a new vision for our future and the courage to pursue it without reservation.
The decisions made at the State Capitol in the weeks and months to come will affect us all. That’s why it is so important that you are involved in the process. As always I will rely heavily on your input as I work to make the best decisions possible for our community and state. I strongly encourage you to contact me throughout the 2009 Legislative Session with questions, concerns, and suggestions on any legislative issue. You can reach me by phone at (651) 296-4277 or by email at rep.tim.mahoney@house.mn. I look forward to hearing from you as we work together to create a new beginning, a renewed sense of hope, and a stronger economy for all Minnesotans.
News Items
- DFL Legislators Introduce the “Contraceptive Equity Act” - (Posted: 2012-03-07 00:00:00)
- DFL Jobs Initiatives to be Heard in House Jobs and Economic Development Committee - (Posted: 2012-02-29 00:00:00)
- REP. MAHONEY, DFL LEGISLATORS BUILD ON DFL JOBS PLAN WITH NEW INITIATIVES - (Posted: 2012-02-01 00:00:00)
- Archived News Items
- Subscribe to RSS News Feeds
- Read more about RSS.