Dear Neighbors,
We are now three weeks into the 2017 session and are off to a great start. I have introduced a handful of bills that are key projects to help our community, both the House and the Senate have passed health care premium relief bills, and Real ID is making its way through committees.
3 Local Projects
I have authored three bills that were introduced in the first part of session all aimed at improving the infrastructure in our area.
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Champlin Mill Pond Restoration Project – This bill will appropriate $3.3 million in bonding to the city of Champlin to clean the Mill Pond and make other improvements including improving water quality and restore fish habitat.
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Coon Rapids Raid Grade Crossing Project – This bill will appropriate $12.6 million in bonding to study, design, and construct a rail grade crossing at Hanson Boulevard in Coon Rapids. This will help to solve the problem of the city of Coon Rapids essentially being cut in half when trains are stopped or crossing this intersection. This project with alleviate both a public safety problem as well as a major inconvenience for thousands of Coon Rapids residents.
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Highway 169 and 101st Avenue Interchange Project – This bill will appropriate $12.8 million in bonding to construct an interchange located at Highway 169 and 101st Avenue in Brooklyn Park. This project will help to alleviate congestion and make this area much safer for residents.
All three of these projects are important to our community and I will make pushing to make them a reality. If you have any concerns or ideas for other projects that are needed in our area, please reach out and contact me.
Health Care Premium Relief Passes House
We quickly moved to provide $285 million in premium relief to Minnesotans who have suffered skyrocketing premiums due to the failings of MNsure. Our bill provides not only premium relief but also dedicates $15 million to ensure that Minnesotans undergoing critical treatment can continue to receive care from their current doctors. Now we must continue the long process of reforming the individual insurance market to work for all Minnesotans.
The House, Senate, and Governor Dayton will now enter into negotiations to finalize and pass relief for Minnesotans.
REAL ID
You’ve probably heard about REAL ID in the news or maybe have seen signs at the airport, military bases, or other federal facilities. I wanted to take a moment to explain what exactly REAL ID is and what we are doing in St. Paul to address the situation.
In the wake of 9/11, the Department of Homeland Security created a set of standards that state driver’s licenses would need to meet to be able to board planes or grant access to federal facilities, including military bases. The goal of REAL ID is to make air travel and federal facilities more secure. Minnesota is one of a few states that has not made our driver’s licenses REAL ID compliant and we face of deadline of January of 2018 to make progress or Minnesota driver’s licenses will no longer be sufficient for boarding an airplane. Minnesotans would need a passport or enhanced ID in order to fly domestically.
In order to address this, I have co-authored House File 3 a two-track, opt-in REAL ID bill that will create a REAL ID compliant driver’s license for those who chose to have one. Minnesotans who do not wish to have a REAL ID compliant license can choose not to do so. This is a compromise that gives every Minnesotan the choice to either participate in REAL ID or to not do so.
If you have any more questions about REAL ID, please do not hesitate to call me.
Please Contact Me
Please continue to stay in touch to share your thoughts and ideas on the bills heard in committee and in session. You can schedule a time to meet with me in my office any time by calling my office at (651) 296-5513, or share your thoughts via email by emailing me at rep.mark.uglem@house.mn.
Thank you and have a great day,
Mark