Dear Neighbors,
Greetings to you from the Capitol! As we enter the final month of the 2017 legislative session, the House is spending less time debating bills in committee and on the House floor to allow time for conference committees to meet and resolve differences between House and Senate budget bills.
Prevent Measles Spread
With the recent incidence of measles cases among unvaccinated children, we all need to take steps to reduce the spread of this virus.
Measles isa highly contagious disease caused by a virus. It can lead to hospitalization and in rare cases death. Measles spreads through the air by coughing or sneezing. You can get measles by just being in the same room as someone who has measles.
Symptoms include a high fever, cough, runny nose and watery eyes, followed by a rash that typically spreads from head to the rest of the body. A person with measles can pass it to others from four days before their rash appears to four days after it appears.
I am sharing information to give your friends and families about steps you can take to get vaccinated and prevent the spread of the measles virus to yourself or others. I’m sharing this information because I want you and your children, and everyone in the community to be healthy. The best thing you can do right now is to make sure everyone who is able to get the MMR vaccine gets it.
For parents concerned about the cost of immunizations, the Minnesota Vaccines for Children Program provides free or low-cost vaccines for eligible children through age 18. More information is available at Can My Child Get Free or Low Cost Shots?
For more information on measles, updates on the outbreak and important contact info you can go to the Minnesota Department of Health website here. You can also find a Measles fact sheet translated in Somali and other languages here.
Budget Targets
Today, House and Senate Republicans released their joint budget targets for conference committees to finish their work. This will impact my work and my ability to contribute in a meaningful way on the Higher Education Conference Committee, because the joint target is set even further below the amount of higher education funding passed in the House Higher Education Omnibus finance bill, and lower still beneath the Governor’s budget request of $318 million in new investment. Earlier this month the Star Tribune pointed out our woeful underfunding of higher education in a pointed Op-Ed, and the joint target released today will not help remedy the problem.
Furthermore, these targets set the stage for a return to deficits, program cuts, and tuition hikes, and they are not based in reality. Republicans are not taking the actual costs of government into account in many of their budget targets. We cannot participate in passing a budget that takes us backward. We need to be acknowledging reality, especially when it comes to our students.
I’m still committed to finding ways to work together to make progress, but the budget targets presented today don’t allow us to meet the basic needs of Minnesota students. I hope we will be able to improve the final product through public and open final negotiations.
Preemption to Cut Earned Benefits
As I mentioned last week, legislation to preempt local governments from setting workplace policies is continuing to move at the Capitol. Your calls to Governor Dayton’s office are making an impact. We need him to veto this legislation to protect worker benefits in Minneapolis. I was a strong no vote on this bill when it came before us in the House.
Please call Governor Dayton and tell him you support the ability of local communities to set their own fair labor standards. He needs to hear from you about these bills currently moving at the Capitol, and I would encourage you to call Governor Dayton's office and share your concerns at 651-201-3400.
If enacted, it would prevent local communities like Minneapolis from enacting earned sick leave, paid family leave, fair scheduling, and a higher minimum wage, among other policies. Earned sick time for 150,000 Minnesotans would be taken away, and future wage and benefit increases prevented.
Stay Connected
You can always contact me at rep.ilhan.omar@house.mn or at 651-296-4257. I appreciate hearing from you.
Please follow me on facebook and twitter to stay up to date and receive action alerts.
Sincerely,
Ilhan Omar
State Representative