ST. PAUL—Rep. Jean Wagenius (DFL-Minneapolis), co-chair of the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR), released a statement regarding the elimination of a recommended project from HF 390, the Environment and Natural Resources Trust fund appropriations bill.
“Yesterday, the House Republicans disregarded a respected review and recommendation process in favor of partisan politics. Among the GOP-led House Environment and Natural Resources Policy and Finance Committee's numerous changes to the Environment and Natural Resources Trust fund bill was the deletion of a unique proposal by the University of St. Thomas. The proposal would have given students hands on experience in research and data analysis, designed to show how our ecosystem and natural resources are working.
“Getting more students involved in science has been a bi-partisan goal. The Republicans eliminated a project that does just that. Moreover eliminating this project proposed by St. Thomas, an institution that normally does not receive public funding, just reverts back to funding the same groups that come back time after time. If we are going to be a state that makes decisions based on data and science we can’t set a precedent like this.”
###