Dear Friends and Neighbors,
Here is an update from the Minnesota House.
House Resolution Presentation
Last week, I was honored to present House Resolutions to a number of outstanding Forest Lake constituents including:
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The FLHS Boys' Nordic and Alpine Ski Teams, who both took first place in the state championships
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Triple-A Award winner and FLHS Student Michael Palo
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James Pleski, the 145 lb. FLHS senior and state AAA wrestling champion
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Tim Brockman, the Minnesota Computers for Schools Excellence in Education Award winner
MN Healthy Kids Coalition
On Wednesday, I spoke at the Minnesota Healthy Kids Coalition Event at the History Center, where I shared some updates about legislative initiatives that aim to cut the rates of childhood obesity and improve kids' health.
My bill, House File 498, would help fight childhood obesity by updating our statewide standards for physical education in schools and by recommending specific physical education benchmarks for children at different grade levels. I introduced HF 498 to help our schools monitor the quality and quantity of physical education classes Minnesota students receive. It received its first hearing in the Education Innovation Policy Committee this week and was passed onto the Education Finance Committee.
The Road and Bridge Act
Earlier this week, House and Senate Republicans unveiled a comprehensive ten year, $7 billion transportation plan that can offer our state world-class transportation infrastructure without raising taxes.
The Road and Bridge Act will repair or replace more than 15,000 miles of road and 330 bridges statewide. It will also fund highway improvements for commuters and commerce, easing congestion in the Twin Cities.
Minnesota families rely on our roads and bridges to get to work and drive their children to school, but the state doesn't need to increase the cost of driving to ensure our roads are top quality. Instead of a new gas tax like the governor wants, the Road and Bridge act provides smart budgeting and stable funding.
This proposal creates a special Transportation Stability Fund, rededicating transportation taxes the state already collects like the auto parts sales tax and the rental vehicle sales tax to roads and bridges. Additionally, it uses $1.3 billion in Trunk Highway bonds, $1.2 billion from realigning Minnesota Department of Transportation resources, $1.05 billion in General Obligation bonds, and $228 million in General Fund dollars.
If the Governor's gas tax were passed, a family with two cars in the metro area would pay an average of $600 more per year. We don't need to increase your taxes to get substantial infrastructure improvements, and that is why I am pleased the Road and Bridge Act has been introduced in the House.
I will keep you updated on transportation funding as the legislation moves forward this session.
Medal of Honor Day
National Medal of Honor Day was Wednesday, and tying into that is some great news for our state. The Congressional Medal of Honor Society (CMOHS) has selected Minneapolis-St. Paul as the host community for the 2016 Medal of Honor Convention. This is a great opportunity for our community to celebrate the servicemen and women who have dedicated so much to our nation.
As always, thank you to all our military who are serving or who have served! We owe our freedoms and way of life to your dedication and sacrifice.
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As always, thank you for the honor and privilege of being your state representative. If I can ever be of assistance to you or your family on a matter of state government, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
Bob