Dear Friends and Neighbors,
Greetings as we make our way toward the Independence Day holiday. I hope you are able to get out and enjoy yourself even if things are a bit different this year. Please be safe if you are traveling and stay hydrated in these hot temperatures.
As for official business, here are some notes from the Capitol:
New laws take effect
A handful of new laws take effect July 1, including a change related to tractor safety. A tractor rollover prevention grant program that was created a few years ago expired in 2019 and is being re-established July 1. It permits the Agriculture Department to award grants to farmers and schools that retrofit tractors built before 1987 with eligible rollover protective structures. Also, the Alec Smith Insulin Affordability Act allows diabetics with less than a one-week supply of insulin that otherwise do not have access to the drug to receive a 30-day emergency supply from a pharmacy.
More information on new laws can be accessed here. Summaries of all laws passed by the 2020 Legislature are available online from nonpartisan House Public Information Services here.
Deadline to apply for small biz grants is Thursday
The deadline for small businesses to apply for COVID-19 relief grants is 5 p.m. Thursday. This program will make available $10,000 grants to Minnesota owned and operated businesses that can demonstrate financial hardship as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. Businesses with 50 or fewer full-time employees may be eligible. A total of $60.3 million is available for grant awards which will be selected through a computer-generated, randomized selection process. Click here for more.
Another special session?
Official word has not been issued regarding a special session that could take place in the next couple of weeks, but we anticipate the governor will call one, in part, to extend his emergency powers. His latest 30-day extension ends July 12 and he would need to call a special session to push his powers out another month. I would rather see the governor’s emergency powers come to an end so we can restore balance at the Capitol instead of having the Legislature cut out of the decision-making process.
Please Contact Me
Look for more news soon. For now, have a good Independence Day holiday and, as always, I encourage you to please contact me with questions or opinions on any issue. You can reach me at 651-296-4378 or rep.nels.pierson@house.mn.
Regards,
