The eighty-ninth session of the legislature began, Tuesday, Jan. 6th with the swearing in of all the Members of the Minnesota House of Representatives, including me. Serving as your representative at the Capitol is a great honor. I once again enjoyed the experience of witnessing the excitement on the faces of new and returning members as they’re surrounded by family and friends. The House Chamber is a beautiful and impressive place and I am reminded of the great trust you’ve placed in me to be your voice at the Capitol.
This session I am assigned to three committees, Agriculture Finance, Agriculture Policy and Education Innovation Policy. My seniority has given me the opportunity to serve as DFL-Lead on Agriculture Policy. In these uncertain economic times there are some very tough issues facing our small and medium sized family farms, workers in agricultural, and rural Minnesota in general. I believe we must do everything we can to encourage new family farms and ensure our existing family farms have an environment in which they can thrive at the same time we support them in protecting our soil and water resources. I recently participated in a press conference about Minnesota’s nation-leading Water Quality Certification Program. This program has allowed Minnesota to leverage $9 million dollars in federal funds while helping farmers meet water quality goals and guaranteeing that they won’t face the uncertainty of changing regulations.
I plan to focus on improving our transportation infrastructure and promote multi-modal options like the regional passenger rail line connecting Northfield and the Twin Cities.
I will also focus on continuing to build on the investments in education we made with initiatives such as universal pre-K, extending the tuition freeze at state colleges and universities, and continuing support for the student grant program. It is good to see the local efforts as Northfield Schools and Tri-City United implement the "World's best workforce" legislation. I was pleased to hear about the plans for upcoming career and jobs fairs. Our economy is improving, but we still have much work to do to assure all Minnesotans have access to living wage jobs and access to quality, affordable healthcare.
In addition, I am proud of local efforts to make use of legislation we passed in 2013. Northfield will be home to one of Minnesota’s first community solar gardens. Solar power is often more affordable and practical in rural areas. Community solar gardens work by having individuals and businesses come together to invest in a solar garden and then they receive individual credits on their electricity bills. We passed legislation that encouraged such projects by making sure Xcel would partner with solar producers and reimburse them for the percentage of the power they each generate. Projects such as the one in Northfield will help create good paying jobs in our community and use market forces to make Minnesota power generation more sustainable. You can find out more by visiting www.mn.gov and searching for “community solar gardens” or visit www.mncommunitysolar.com/northfield to learn about our specific project.
I encourage you to contact me with any questions, comments, concerns, or ideas. I can be reached by phone at 651-296-0171 or by email at rep.david.bly@house.mn. You can also visit my legislative web page and sign up for email updates.
David Bly
State Representative, District 20B