Dear Neighbor,
Despite a flood of advice to the contrary Gov. Walz refiled a dismissed lawsuit in an effort to sabotage the replacement of Enbridge’s aging Line 3 pipeline.
While his action does not stop the project from going forward, it will certainly cost Minnesota taxpayers a lot of money. The governor is seeking to overturn a decision by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC) with a lawsuit initiated by the Minnesota Dept. of Commerce. Both agencies will be wasting taxpayer money on the governor’s effort to undermine the PUC’s fact based decision to replace this aging pipeline.
I am disappointed with his decision which puts the environment and the economic stability of northern Minnesota counties at continued risk. This project needs to go forward.
Many of you have voiced a concern about the difficulty in reaching Gov. Walz or members of his administration. Here are some phone numbers that may be helpful.
- Governor’s Office, main line: (651) 201-3400
- Jessi Held, Executive Director of Scheduling: (651) 201-3437
- Andrew Olson, Assistant Chief of Staff for Appointments: (651) 201-3413
- Kristin Beckman, Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications & Scheduling: (651) 201-3409
We had many visitors from the district in St. Paul this week including members of the Aitkin and Crow Wing County Board of Commissioners and county staff. They provided input on healthcare access and healthcare costs, county program aid, lack of mental health treatment beds, and child out of home child place costs being driven by substance abuse and addiction. I continue to work on all these important issues.
We had some good news from the DNR this week. Anglers on Mille Lacs Lake will have an opportunity to keep some walleye during the open-water fishing season this spring. Detailed regulations on how that will happen will be announced in mid-March.
This morning Senator Gazelka, Senator Ruud, Rep. Poston, Rep. Heintzeman and myself participated in a panel discussion over breakfast with about 100 members of the Brainerd Lakes Chamber of Commerce. We spent the morning exploring a wide range of issues that impact local businesses and their ability to create and maintain quality jobs.
I continue to seek input, many folks have already participated in the online survey I launched last week. If you haven’t already participated please click here. Have a safe weekend.
Sincerely,
Dale