Dear Neighbors,
There are two weeks remaining in the legislative session for us complete our work. We must adjourn by Monday, May 21st. This week the House continued the work of passing budget bills, including: taxes, health and human services, transportation, public safety, jobs, agriculture and environment. I voted no on many of the bills that came before us this week, because my number one priority is to make sure the values of the people in our community are put first. Unfortunately, these Republican supplemental budget bills didn’t do that.
Republican Tax Bill Passes
On Monday, the House passed the Republican tax bill, HF 4385. The House tax bill is a response to the federal tax bill, which will raise taxes on many Minnesotans. It’s unfortunate that House Republicans chose to follow the lead of Republicans in Washington D.C. and prioritize tax cuts for corporations instead of hard working Minnesotans.
Minnesotans want to see one another succeed, but at every turn Republicans prioritize corporations and the wealthy instead of most Minnesotans.
Omnibus Bills Pass House
This week the House passed its remaining supplemental budget bills including measures related to health and human services, transportation, public safety, jobs, energy, agriculture and the environment.
I rose to oppose many measures in these bills, including anti-free speech language in the Public Safety Omnibus that would silence our voices by increasing penalties for peaceful protesters. Minnesotans have the right to protest until their leaders listen, and you can read the statement I issued here. My POCI caucus colleagues also sent a statement against the Republican anti-protester language.
All Minnesotans deserve the opportunity to be safe, healthy, and successful. These bills failed on all three counts. At every turn, Republicans put corporations ahead of working people and divide and distract Minnesotans instead of prioritizing an agenda to build a better future for everyone.
These Republican omnibus bills don’t represent Minnesota values, and I hope the Governor vetoes them so that we can lift people up by passing legislation that won’t inflict harm on members of our communities.
Republicans Refuse Common Sense Gun Bills
During our debate on the Public Safety Omnibus, Republicans fell far short of their responsibility to Minnesotans by not offering a single amendment related to common sense gun measures like criminal background checks and gun violence protective orders. Republicans have blocked many DFL efforts to move these bills forward. Last week, I joined my colleagues for a 24 hour sit-in on the House floor to protest our inaction on gun violence. Now, Republicans will face voters and pay the consequences for doing nothing as thousands of Minnesotans continue to organize around common sense gun safety reforms. Minnesotans expect us to do something on common-sense gun safety measures that will make our families, communities, and Minnesota safer. This week students at the University of Minnesota continued organizing around the issue and you can read about their discussions here.
Dayton calls for Emergency Education Funding
On Tuesday, Governor Dayton called for emergency aid for Minnesota's schools. At least 26 school districts in the metropolitan area and 33 school districts in Greater Minnesota are facing immediate budget deficits that could result in hundreds of teachers and support staff being laid off, increased class sizes, and significant cuts to school programs in the coming year. Governor Dayton has proposed $138 million of one-time, emergency funding to increase resources for every Minnesota school district by $126 per student, or a 2% per-pupil increase. Here in Minneapolis, that would mean just over $6 million in 2018-2019 to help over 34,000 students in our public schools. Because of the $33 million deficit Minneapolis schools face this year, caused by the underfunding of mandated services at the state and federal level, an estimated 350-400 staff may need to be cut. We need to do something.
Every child in Minnesota deserves a world-class education, but we cannot deliver on that promise if our schools don’t have adequate resources. One of the state’s biggest investments should be in education, but unfortunately Republicans immediately denounced the emergency funds in favor of spending on corporate tax cuts.
Republican Public Infrastructure Bill Released
House Republicans unveiled their $825 million bonding bill this week, with just two and a half weeks left in the legislative session. While the bill does include some projects for higher education, clean water, and housing, it is half the size of the governor’s proposal and leaves out many worthy projects. It is extremely inadequate when compared to the University of Minnesota and Minnesota State’s full bonding requests.
The people of Minnesota count on our state infrastructure every single day and they expect the Legislature to maintain and protect roads and bridges, clean water infrastructure, our colleges and universities, and other state assets. It’s our responsibility.
25 Influential American Muslims
It’s an honor to be recognized as one of the most influential Muslims in America. I continue to feel so humbled that our story is being uplifted! CNN spent a year interviewing more than 100 American Muslims, asking who they think are the most influential Muslims in their fields. They sought nominees for whom religion is part of their public identity, but other than that, they let American Muslims do most of the talking. You can read more on this honor here.
Please contact me if you have questions at 651-296-4257 or rep.ilhan.omar@house.mn and sign up for my email updates here.
Sincerely,
Ilhan Omar
State Representative