Dear Neighbors,
The Minnesota Legislature went into a special session on June 12, 2020 with the hopes of passing some much needed legislation. The House DFL, and the POCI caucus in particular worked incredibly hard to craft and pass legislation from repairing and renewing our aging infrastructure, to reforming our public safety system. Even though the Senate Republicans decided to pack up and go home, I am committed to coming back for future special sessions to pass these critical bills. Here is what we were working on before this special session ended.
Minnesota Police Accountability Act of 2020
The House DFL recognizes that we need systemic reform if we are to ever have a public safety system that makes all Minnesotans safer and the House was able to pass a comprehensive package of policing reforms in this special session. However, our Republican colleagues refused to meet the moment and stand up for these much needed reforms.
Here is the full list of reforms the House passed:
Reclaiming Community Oversight
Putting power into the hands of the people and neighborhoods that police officers are sworn to serve and protect.
Reforming Accountability
Restoring confidence and trust in the systems that are meant to provide justice for all Minnesotans.
Re-Imagining Public Safety
Ending the unacceptable culture that is responsible for the murder of George Floyd and far too many others who look like him.
House DFL PROMISE ACT
We also took advantage of the special session to introduce and pass the PROMISE Act to provide immediate assistance in rebuilding neighborhoods that were hurt by the recent unrest in an equitable and community-led manner. We needed to take action and support these communities, which are unfortunately now undergoing a very difficult time. You can watch our press conference on this legislation here. The legislation would:
Tomorrow, Tuesday, June 30, at 5:00 pm you’re invited to attend a community forum on the PROMISE Act. The event is taking place in the ballroom at Plaza Verde (1516 E Lake St, Minneapolis, MN 55407). Feel free to RSVP on Facebook here.
CARES Act to Help Local Governments
The federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Actis legislation delivers $841 million of relief to Minnesota’s counties, cities, and townships - allowing for new investments in the communities of Minnesota. Unfortunately, this issue became divisive as well and we were unable to come to a final agreement during the Special Session. Thankfully, Governor Tim Walz released those funds with a plan to distribute the funds to communities across the state impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. $841 million will be distributed to Minnesota counties, cities, and towns to support local government coronavirus relief efforts. $12 million will be allocated toward food shelves and food banks. Our communities of Burnsville and Lakeville which will receive $4.7 million, and $4.8 million, respectively.
Assistance for Small Business
One important bill that we passed will create a $62.5 million fund for small business grants. Businesses with 50 or fewer employees can receive grants up to $10,000 each. This is a very important bill that will provide our local businesses with the assistance they need to continue on during these difficult times. Of the $62.5 million total, there are several areas where the funding is targeted:
To be eligible, the business must meet the following requirements:
Grants will be awarded by lottery and the funds will be evenly split in their allocation to Greater Minnesota and Metro-area businesses. The process is now open, and applications will be accepted during a 10-day period beginning on Tuesday, June 23, and lasting through Thursday, July 2. You can find more information on how to apply here.
New Laws
On July 1, several new laws will take effect. Among these is the Alec Smith Insulin Affordability Act, which is landmark legislation lawmakers approved this year to help ensure people with diabetes can access the insulin they need to live in an emergency situation, and to create a long-term path to access affordable insulin. The bill is named after Alec Smith, a 26-year-old from Richfield who tragically died when he was forced to ration his insulin because he couldn’t afford to refill his prescription. It’s inexcusable that this could happen to anyone in this country, and this legislation is needed to ensure it never happens to anyone in Minnesota again.
Also taking effect on Wednesday is the Prescription Drug Price Transparency Act. It will require drug makers to report the reasons for price increases and provide other detailed information about the cost of manufacturing, marketing and distributing drugs. It would require price transparency for existing drugs, new drugs and newly acquired drugs. This is a major step forward in our efforts to shine a light on high drug prices, and we will keep working on solutions to ensure all Minnesotans can access the medications they need. You can read more about these and other new laws here.
Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns. It is very important that we work together to ensure that the best information is getting out to our communities. You can find my full contact information online at www.house.mn/56B.
Sincerely,
Rep. Alice Mann