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State Representative Jeanne Poppe
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-4193
For more information contact: Sandy Connolly 651-296-8877
NEWS COLUMN
Success continues at the Capitol
The news last week was that several area bonding projects were included in the House Capital Investment Bill. This week, the news is even better. All of the projects received bipartisan support and were funded in the vote on Tuesday by all members of the House. The bill has now moved to Conference Committee, where differences between the House bill and the Senate bill will be resolved. We hope for a good outcome as it eventually gets sent on to the Governor.
Clearly, legislators heard the message from the voters in the last election; you want us to get along and get things done. I am optimistic that this spirit of cooperation will continue and I am proud to be a part of this new bipartisan legislature.
This week in the Environment and Natural Resources committee we heard testimony on the "Clean Water Legacy" Act. This bill combines the efforts of farmers, businesses, local units of government, conservation and environmental groups working together to protect our healthy water and initiate clean-up on impaired waters. I had the opportunity to speak with Representative Dennis Ozment, chief author of the bill, regarding an amendment that can benefit people within our area. This amendment, which has been approved in committee, establishes a small community wastewater treatment fund from which loans can be made available. Committee Chair Representative Tom Hackbarth stated this is a bill that will be amended and discussed through a number of committees and the hope is to bring it forward in the best possible shape.
In order to help focus on the funding for the clean up of impaired waters, I was happy to co-author a bill this week that was introduced by Rep. Frank Moe (DFL-Bemidji). The "Minnesota Fishing Protection Act" is intended to protect fishing in Minnesota as a way of life and as fundamental to our economy. Under this act, the 40% of lottery proceeds that were originally intended for environmental and economic development investments would be recaptured for this purpose. In 2004, over $55 million of lottery proceeds went to the general fund to fill holes in the state budget. This bill calls for the state to renew its commitment to using those funds for their intended purpose.
It was a busy week at the Capitol and I was pleased to see so many people from District 27B. Youth involved in chemical-free initiatives in their schools (Austin High, Ellis Middle School, Grand Meadow, LeRoy-Ostrander, Southland) filled the Senate chambers and presented information to Senator Sparks, Representative Dorman, and me. They were articulate, knowledgeable, professional and persuasive in their presentations. Media/journalism students from Austin High came to talk about libraries and actually did some videotaping for their morning news show. Other visitors this week advocated for the arts, the trucking industry, agriculture education/FFA, and Head Start. Soil and Water Conservation District board members and Freeborn-Mower Electric Cooperative board members also met with me to discuss their legislative initiatives.
Please feel free to call or write if you have ideas or concerns you want to share about state or local issues. I can be reached by phone at 1-888-682-3180 or 1-651-296-4193, by mail at 231 State Office Building, 100 Martin Luther King Blvd., St. Paul, MN 55155 or via e-mail at rep.jeanne.poppe@house.mn.
News Items
- POPPE SELECTED AS AGRICULTURE POLICY COMMITTEE CHAIR - (Posted: 2012-11-16 00:00:00)
- Rep. Jeanne Poppe Encourages High School Juniors to Apply for Minnesota House of Representatives Page Program - Application Deadline is November 19th - (Posted: 2012-11-12 00:00:00)
- HORMEL INSTITUTE EXPANSION SIGNED INTO LAW - 2012 legislative session adjourns sine die - (Posted: 2012-05-11 00:00:00)
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