ST. PAUL Rep. Mary Franson (R-Alexandria) was officially sworn in as the state representative for House District 08B today in St. Paul in the chamber of the Minnesota House of Representatives. District 08B consists of northeastern Douglas County and eastern Otter Tail County.
“I am humbled and honored to be able to serve the people of north-central Minnesota for a second term,” said Franson. “When I was sworn in two years ago, unemployment in this district was about 8%. The pro-growth policies that Republican legislators pushed for the past two years have worked. Now, unemployment in the district is now about 4.5%.”
“Although Republicans are no longer in control of the legislature, I plan to roll up my sleeves and get to work on the challenges facing us as a community and as a state,” said Franson. “Minnesota workers, along with the rest of the country, are already feeling the financial pinch with the payroll tax going back up. I am going to fight to make sure hard-working Minnesotans keep more of their own money in their pocket.”
Franson’s priorities this session include job creation, education reform, healthcare, agriculture, tax reform, and transportation.
“I plan to work in a bipartisan way to help my community,” said Franson. “However, I am already concerned about efforts by the SEIU and Paraprofessional Healthcare Institute to unionize in-home care workers. Vulnerable people like children, the sick, and the elderly do not deserve to be caught up in a political power grab.”
Franson committee assignments include Early Childhood & Youth Development Policy, Health & Human Services Policy, and Higher Education Finance & Policy.
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