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Legislative News and Views - Rep. Sondra Erickson (R)

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Legislative Update from Rep. Sondra Erickson

Friday, May 18, 2018

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

We have entered the final weekend of the 2018 legislative session and we are working around the clock to ensure that we finish the people’s work in a timely and orderly fashion. I’ll have more information for you next week after we adjourn and the dust settles on this year’s session.

On Thursday, the House approved legislation that would place a constitutional amendment on the ballot for voter approval this fall. The amendment would dedicate taxes solely collected from the sales of auto parts and vehicle repairs to be used to repair our roads and bridges.

The revenue from the sales tax on auto parts is estimated at $250-$260 million per year.

This is a commonsense approach to address the transportation infrastructure shortfalls the state has been facing for too long. Our transportation system needs stable, dependable funding in order to ensure that the investments in roads and bridges – worth billions of dollars – can be maintained.

We will have to wait and see if the Senate will act on this legislation before the session is over.

While I attended floor session on Wednesday, my staff enjoyed visitors from one of our Asian-American communities who came to thank me for supporting policy proposals related to data disaggregation. These initiatives are needed to track the learning disparities among children. Staff said they were delightful, and I found heart-warming notes of appreciation on my desk when I returned from session.

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I appreciate the support and kind words from this group of visitors this past week. Thanks for stopping by!

Finally, on a disappointing note, protesters occupied the 4th floor corner of the state office building right outside my office this week to demonstrate against legislation carried by Jobs Chairman, Rep. Pat Garofalo. The protestors spent hours down in our corner and even entered and occupied Rep. Garofalo’s office. In addition to illegally occupying Rep. Garofalo’s office, the protestors defaced the greeting area outside of my office.

When it was all said and done, 14 protestors were arrested and escorted out of the building.

The right to protest and demonstrate are part of what make our country great and every citizen has the right to do so. However, it is disappointing to see it taken to the point of unlawfulness and vandalism. For more information on this, click here.

That’s all for this week’s update. As always, please do not hesitate to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns regarding a matter related to state government. I can be reached by phone at 651-296-6746 or via email at rep.sondra.erickson@house.mn.

Have a great weekend and I will have more information for you next week after final adjournment,

Sondra