Dear Neighbors,
It has been just about one month since the legislative session adjourned for the year. Serving in the Minnesota House has been a tremendous privilege and every day in St. Paul, I’ve strived to work across the aisle to craft solutions improving the lives of Minnesotans and their families, and support policies which are good the Iron Range. As part of this, I’ve worked to develop strong, genuine relationships with other elected officials. This has all been extremely rewarding.
Following the end of session, back here in the district I’ve been quite busy meeting with constituents, local organizations, and attending community events. Recently I held a series of Town Hall Meetings, and I want to sincerely thank everyone who attended. The state budget we recently passed includes a wide variety of subject areas, from education, to transportation, to health care, to public safety and many others, so it was a great opportunity to recap what got done, as well as what didn’t, with members of the community. There were many fantastic questions and as well as valuable feedback. This high level of engagement is important for me, and I hope these meetings were as worthwhile for the folks who had a chance to make it as they were for me.
Recently, production started at United Taconite’s Project Mustang pellet plant in Forbes. I’m honored to have attended the ribbon cutting ceremony for this project along with others including Senator Klobuchar and Congressman Rick Nolan. The Mustang is a custom flux pellet, and Cliffs invested $75 million to make the plant operational.
I’ve previously mentioned how impressed I am with the operations at Bigfork Valley Hospital, which delivers services across the continuum of care. Earlier this month, I was thrilled to participate in the groundbreaking ceremony for their $1.2 million expansion of their Scenic Rivers Clinic wing.
Last week, I attended a federal land withdrawal meeting concerning mineral leases and the federal moratorium for mining on land in northern Minnesota. These efforts are completely nonpartisan, and this was an extremely productive event giving us an opportunity to discuss solutions. Also attending this meeting were Congressman Nolan as well as some Republicans including Congressmen Tom Emmer of central Minnesota, Paul Gosar of Arizona and Bruce Westerman of Arkansas. I’m very grateful for Reps. Gosar and Westerman making the trip to Minnesota and for showing an exceptional interest in and genuine concern for the vitality of our region. I thank them for taking so much time to listen to us and learn about our rich mining heritage on the Range.
At both at the state and federal levels, there is a great deal of support across the political spectrum to move forward with responsible mining proposals, including the opportunity presented by Twin Metals. I’m hopeful that discussions like these will give a boost to these efforts to create good paying jobs and strengthen our economy.
I’ve had the opportunity to attend several other meetings and events since session adjourned, including: a meeting with Minnesota Power to discuss their package of new generation resources, the groundbreaking of the MDI expansion, a meeting of the Itasca Working Families Alliance, a Hibbing PUC meeting, and an Iron Range Economic Alliance board meeting, among others.
I’m looking to get out and about throughout the district as much as possible before the 2018 session starts in February, so if you would like me to visit your business or organization, or if you’d like to meet individually, please feel free to contact me at the Capitol. Throughout the rest of the summer and beyond, I hope you will feel free to call or email me with any ideas, feedback, or questions you have. To address the outstanding challenges our state faces, we will all have to work together, so please don’t hesitate to reach out to me any time. Thank you for the honor of serving at the State Capitol.
Sincerely,
Julie Sandstede
State Representative