Last week, I had the honor of being officially sworn in as the state representative for House District 30A today in St. Paul in the chamber of the Minnesota House of Representatives. I’m proud to be able to represent the people of Elk River, Big Lake, Big Lake Township, and Otsego in St. Paul. During the campaign, I committed to bringing my Minnesota values of fiscal discipline and job creation to the Capitol and I intend to keep that pledge.
I’m excited to dive into my committee work. My committee assignments include Health & Human Services Policy, Health & Human Services Finance, and Housing Finance & Policy.
In addition to fighting for lower taxes and spending control, one specific priority I have is to introduce a bill that would require doctors to screen newborn babies for congenital heart defects. The newborn screening is performed utilizing a pulse oximetry test that measures the oxygen saturation in the blood. A low oxygen saturation level can indicate a previously undiagnosed heart defect. The test takes only a few moments and can be conducted while the mother continues to hold her newborn baby. Undiagnosed heart defects can cause serious complications only a few days into the new baby's life.
Another one of my priorities is protecting and supporting the agriculture community in my district. I’m concerned that the new DFL-controlled legislature is minimizing agriculture’s importance with a significant change to the committee structure in the House of Representatives. Traditionally, the agriculture finance and policy divisions have been under the jurisdiction of a single committee focused exclusively on agriculture issues. Now, the agriculture finance division has been moved into what has been named the Environment, Natural Resources, & Agriculture Finance Committee. This committee is being chaired by a DFL legislator from Minneapolis. I believe it’s important that agriculture has a single unified voice in the committee structure and should not be separated into policy and finance divisions. Furthermore, agriculture funding and policies should be in the hands of rural lawmakers. I plan to monitor this situation closely as agriculture bills are moving through the legislative process.
Now that the legislative session has begun, please feel free to contact me on any state issue. I can be reached via email at rep.nick.zerwas@house.mn. To contact me by phone, call (651) 296-4237. Mail can be sent to Rep. Nick Zerwas, 303 State Office Building, 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, Minnesota 55155. Please feel free to share this update with friends and family and encourage them to sign up for my email updates by clicking the link (http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/members/join.asp?id=15422) and putting in your contact information.
Thank you. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Nick