Dear Neighbors,

It’s been an extremely busy time at the State Capitol. Much of our work has gone into protecting Minnesota’s public health and ensuring we are equipped to respond to disasters. Here are updates on some items we’ve been working on.

COVID-19 Funding

This week lawmakers and Governor Walz came together to quickly deliver $21 million to the Minnesota Department of Health for our state’s response to COVID-19, or the coronavirus. The legislation also has flexibility in case another strain develops later this year, which would hopefully help us avoid a special session. I’m glad that we were able to set politics aside and act swiftly to deliver critical funding for our public health response. In Minnesota, we have terrific doctors and other health professionals, and they need these resources to ensure our state is fully prepared to address this emerging condition. The legislature remains in contact with MDH and the Walz administration and further legislation in response to this illness will be considered in the coming days.

Multiple confirmed cases have now been identified in Minnesota. The Minnesota Department of Health has more information here, and a hotline staffed by public health professionals is available at 651-201-3920 if you have questions. Please do your part by committing to basic precautions, like washing your hands frequently, covering your cough with your sleeve, and staying home if you’re sick.

Disaster Contingency Funding

Speaking of avoiding special sessions, tomorrow the Minnesota House is scheduled to vote on a measure to invest $30 million in our state’s disaster contingency account. This fund enables emergency response funding to be swiftly delivered in the case of a state or federally-declared natural disaster. Spring flooding is a certainty, and we’ve already witnessed high water levels in St. Peter, New Ulm, and Henderson.

When disaster strikes, Minnesotans help one another. 2019 ended with eight state-declared and two federally-declared disasters, and our state needs to be prepared to assist communities when future events occur. I look forward to supporting this bipartisan bill tomorrow.

Supporting our Farmers

2019 was a historically difficult year for agriculture with extreme weather events, global trade uncertainty, low commodity prices, and farmer mental health struggles. For 30 years, farmers have counted on the Rural Finance Authority, which works with local lenders to offer loans to help them through tough financial times or to invest in equipment improvements. Unfortunately, in February, state RFA funding became depleted. Last week on the House Floor I was proud to support legislation to invest $50 million to fund RFA loans, which will help farmers access the financial resources they need to keep moving forward.

Legislation to improve safety on the farm is also advancing in both the House and Senate in response to an alarming increase in preventable injuries and deaths. Rep. Jeff Brand and Sen. Nick Frentz are the chief authors of a bill to establish a new grain storage safety grant program and reauthorize an expired tractor safety program. Both programs would be administered by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture.

Under the grain safety program, the MDA would reimburse 75% or $1,000, whichever is less, of a farmer’s cost to purchase, ship and install eligible safety equipment, such as fall protection or dust collection systems. In 2016, the Legislature created a Tractor Rollover Protection Pilot program, which expired in 2019. This bill would reestablish the program on a permanent basis to reimburse schools or farmers that retrofit eligible, older tractors with rollover bars and seat belts. Learn more here. 

2020 Census

Minnesotans will start receiving documents in the mail from the U.S. Census Bureau as soon as tomorrow. Responding is easy, and your letter will invite you to respond online or by phone. Or you will eventually receive a paper questionnaire form in the mail. For households that do not self-respond, a census taker will follow up in person to have you complete the census. Information about responding to the census is available here, including some videos.

Participating in the Census is extremely valuable to both our community and our state. Census results help determine how billions in federal funding is distributed each year for services and programs, such as schools, clinics and roads, so it’s important every Minnesotan gets counted. Your individual responses are kept strictly confidential. Get more info at 2020Census.gov.

Please continue to contact me with your input or if I can be of assistance. It’s an honor to represent you.

Sincerely,

Jack Considine
State Representative