Dear Neighbors,
Thank you for taking time to read this week’s legislative update. It was a busy week at the Capitol as the first deadline for bills to receive at least one committee hearing was Friday. While much of the week consisted of work in committee, there were a handful of other items that I would like to update you on.
Bill with Local Ties Receives Hearing
On Tuesday, March 17th, the Browns Valley School District superintendent and teachers visited St. Paul to testify in support of a bill that I am authoring that was heard before the Education Finance Committee.
As many of you know, especially those in Browns Valley, Minnesota students may attend a school in another state and students from other states may attend school in Minnesota under certain conditions. Minnesota law authorizes the commissioner of education to enter into tuition reciprocity agreements with neighboring states to make this process go more smoothly.
These reciprocity agreements allow students enrolled in school districts that border South Dakota to enroll in districts on the other side of the border. This is common in places such as Browns Valley. However, these tuition agreements do not provide the authority to enroll a student before kindergarten.
HF 1259 provides a way for Minnesota school districts to enroll students from another state prior to kindergarten and qualifies the same group to be eligible for Minnesota’s early learning scholarship program. This expands eligibility for students and families who may live in another state, but are assigned a Minnesota postal address to enroll in pre-kindergarten programs in Minnesota.
Child Protection Bill Signed
On Tuesday, Governor Dayton signed House File 8. HF 8, chief authored by Rep. Ron Kresha, makes policy changes to Minnesota's child protection system. The changes in this bill are two of the recommendations that came out of the 26-member Governor's Task Force on Child Protection earlier this year.
The Governor’s Task Force on Child Protection was created following the tragic death of 4 year-old Starbuck resident, Eric Dean.
I am grateful that the Governor, members of the Senate, and my colleagues in the House came together to unanimously support these much needed changes in Minnesota’s child protection system. These initial steps are a good starting point and I am looking forward to continuing our work on this extremely important issue.
Proposed Buffer Zones
A bill that would require farmers to create a 50-foot buffer of perennially rooted vegetation adjacent to ditches, rivers and streams received a hearing last week. This legislation, which is the result of a proposal from Governor Dayton, has been met with a lot of questions from lawmakers, farmers, and agency officials.
This proposition is a large undertaking with significant local impacts that, in total, could touch more than 100,000 acres in Minnesota.
The proposal, as it currently stands, poses many more questions than answers. I encourage you to contact my office to let me know your thoughts on this proposal as it continues to be discussed here in St. Paul.
Constituent Visits
On Thursday, I visited with Kjerstin Engebretson of Breckenridge and Kirsten Henagin of Little Falls. Both students attend Concordia College. We talked about the important role the state grants play in higher education.
I met with several supporters and staff members with "Someplace Safe" on Wednesday. Someplace Safe is a nonprofit organization working to eliminate violence in West Central Minnesota.
On Tuesday I presented a pre-kindergarten education bill in front of the Minnesota House Education Finance Committee. Barb Goodhart, Denise Pikarski, and Brenda Reed of the Browns Valley School District testified on behalf of the bill. We received positive feedback from several members of the committee on the exceptional quality of education that Browns Valley School provides.
I met with several area farmers on Tuesday. We discussed several issues including Governor Dayton’s proposed buffer strips.
Staying in Touch
If there are any community events that are taking place in the district that you would like to make me aware of or advertise in my weekly update, please contact my office.
If you are planning on being in St. Paul this session, please feel free to contact my office by phone at 651-296-4929 or via email at rep.jeff.backer@house.mn to set up an appointment. I would love to meet with you and talk about ways we can make Minnesota better. Again, it is an honor and privilege to represent you and your family for the next two years. I am here to be YOUR voice in St. Paul and it is a responsibility that I take very seriously.
Thanks and talk to you soon,
Jeff