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Legislative News and Views - Rep. Jeanne Poppe (DFL)

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Rep. Jeanne Poppe votes for new aid package to address economic impacts of COVID-19

Thursday, March 26, 2020

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Minnesota House took new actions today to protect Minnesotans’ health and economic wellbeing.

Workers, small businesses, child care providers, food shelves, people facing housing insecurity, and Minnesota’s 11 sovereign tribal nations will benefit as a result of a new aid package that received bipartisan approval. The Minnesota Senate is expected to pass the bill this afternoon and Governor Walz is expected to sign it into law. 

“Minnesotans deserve to have economic security during these unprecedented times” said Rep. Jeanne Poppe (DFL-Austin), who voted in support of the bill. “Small businesses, workers, and their families need help right now, and this new package of economic aid is an important downpayment on what will need to be a long-term strategy to help Minnesotans recover.” 

Rep. Poppe authored a passage of the bill that modifies the Rural Finance Authority Disaster Recovery Loan program to allow applications related to any highly contagious animal disease, (instead of just highly pathogenic avian influenza) and an infectious human disease such as COVID-19 for which the governor has declared a peacetime emergency. 

Click here to download a copy of the bill. 

Click here to download a summary of the bill produced by the nonpartisan House Research Department. 

On March 9, the Legislature unanimously approved a $21 million emergency appropriation for public health officials to address COVID-19. On March 17, the Legislature unanimously approved a $200 million emergency appropriation to provide funding for hospitals, clinics, and health care providers. The Legislature is expected to take additional actions in the weeks and months ahead while adhering to public health guidelines.