Dear Neighbor,
I hope all is well as we make our way through the home stretch of what has been a fantastic summer. It has been nice to see so many local people out and about at local events, including the recent LeSueur County Fair. Here is a brief video from one of my visits.
On the legislative front, I have spent significant time lately traveling throughout the state to visit sites of proposed capital investment projects. The most significant bonding bills are formulated during even-numbered years, meaning this will be one of the Legislature's top issues in 2016.
As a member of the House Capital Investment Committee, it has been interesting to participate in these tours. There have been two trips so far, totaling six days looking over the northwest and southwest areas of the state with an average of five stops per day. This makes for 12- or 13-hour days and plenty of time spent thinking on the bus.
One thing that has really struck me as we crisscross the state is the sheer volume of facilities and infrastructure owned by the state. We have stopped at colleges, water treatment plants, rail facilities, prisons, treatment centers and more – all while traveling along state-owned roads. The price tags for maintenance of all this infrastructure boggle the mind and it calls for careful spending and consideration of future obligations.
It will be important to establish a clear list of priority projects as we assemble a bonding bill in 2016. Our focus should be on maintaining our existing infrastructure and supporting necessities, sparing the niceties that often are proposed.
I will keep you posted as bonding news develops; stops in the northeast, southeast and metro remain.
Until then, good luck to students, parents and teachers as the new school year begins. Area superintendents were gracious enough to meet with me and discuss educational issues recently. Look for more about that in an upcoming email.
Sincerely,
Bob